From Digital Streamer to Ideological Figurehead: The Ascent of Hasan Piker

Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have a brief moment to clarify whatever online phenomena unfolded to the bus driver without them turning to you and going, ‘Leave the damn bus.’” The vast majority of online debate, regardless of how intense, fails the test, he says – including a strange event last weekend, when a person on a Dublin street requested to take a picture with Piker, then held up a picture of his dog and yelled “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; attempting to explain the significance of that specific event could easily take the rest of this article.

Occupying the In-Between Zone

Piker operates in this in-between space increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the thirty-four-year-old was known primarily to the very online, especially Americans in their twenties and thirties, largely thanks to his presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But following the last presidential election, Piker has transformed into an sought-after voice in “traditional media” for his views on the struggling political left, and specifically that constantly discussed demographic, young men.

A Prime Hate Figure for the Political Right

Predictably, this also positions Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to criticize: his direct political views; his cultural background; his associations with left-wing politicians. But they also take issue with the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his physique in revealing magazine spreads or social media posts.

“To be frank, I had no idea that this is what I was going to be doing,” says Piker. “Like, if someone were to ask me, did you ever think that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?”

It’s early and he’s preparing to start his regular 11am show. He typically broadcasts live for seven or eight hours straight, talking improvised about current affairs, pop culture, what he’s up to, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the never-ending stream of comments from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Solo Streaming

Building himself on Twitch, which is primarily for streaming video games, was a deliberate decision, Piker says. His media career began with The Young Turks, the progressive online news network. His parents are Turkish immigrants, and he was raised between New Jersey and Istanbul before studying political science. He graduated to his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he decided to go solo on Twitch, to provide an alternative to what he saw as overwhelmingly rightwing, and often divisive views that infested the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological diversity amongst the gamers, amongst the developers, amongst the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political commentary in this arena is so heavily dominated by the right,” he says.

The Challenge with the American Left

This is the fundamental issue with the American left in broad terms, says Piker: they’ve ceded so many arenas to the right. “You absolutely have to promote your ideas … but they simply completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is consistently sharply critical of past administrations on his show, particularly on foreign policy, but he is not a loyal supporter of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are generally social democrat and “empathy-first”, he explains. “My viewpoint is actually the standard position in most of the world.”

Controversies and Backlash

One of the dangers of Piker’s type of informal, relatable commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which provides his critics ammunition. He has been suspended from Twitch several times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a wider critique, he made a statement about a historic attack that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later expressed regret and said the language was inappropriate.

Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and criticism of certain state policies have led to allegations of bias, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing admiration for another major global power, after a trip there.

“I have no issues getting vilified by people on the right. I relish when my enemies hate me,” he says. “It is what it is.”

Offline Repercussions

The hate increasingly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American border agents on his re-entry from a trip. They interrogated him about his political opinions before releasing him. “I think they did it because they know who I am,” he said.

These levels of enmity help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It originated from a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, made a noise suddenly. Online detractors jumped to the conclusion that Piker was harming the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the ambush by a stranger in Dublin.

Piker took that encounter in his stride. Online, though, the encounter was clipped from his live stream and disseminated with his reply edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was shocked,” he said.

The Difference Between Digital and Real Worlds

This highlights the chasm between the offline and online worlds, he says: “It’s very difficult to maintain a very hostile energy in the real world without coming across as hysterical and odd. Interactions on the internet create this environment where you can be as aggressive as you want.”

That Dublin encounter was relatively low stakes. In the US, he feels less safe. The assassination of a conservative commentator served as a harrowing example of where this online hate can end up. Piker watched the event unfold in real time on his stream.

Piker still do real-life streams in the US. “I can’t let fear guide my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Toxic parasocial relationships come with the territory, he accepts.

The Future and Staying Grounded

Having been prescient about a recent election, how does Piker feel the next few years? “The landscape shifts quite rapidly, but if you look at the avenues where there is some glimmer of hope, it’s the left candidates that are actually truly galvanising the public,” he says. He references the progressive “wing”.

“We have to embrace that, because I feel like it’s a matter of life or death at this point,” he adds. “So I will do anything in my power to try and avoid a dark alternative.”

The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it doesn’t sound as if Piker is tempted in traditional political office. He makes occasional media guest spots, but he’s not tempted further into legacy media, he says. “Viewers is moving in my direction, and away from legacy publishers.”

And on top of that, he clearly finds it fulfilling: “I find a lot of emotional fulfilment in what I do.” As he’s talking, he’s got one eye on the clock. Another marathon live stream is about to begin, and he’s eager to get started.