🔗 Share this article ‘I love when my foes hate me’: how Hasan Piker rose to become among the most prominent figures on the American left Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have 30 seconds to describe any online phenomena took place to the bus driver before them turning to you and going, ‘Get off the fucking bus.’” Most online discourse, regardless of how fiery, does not pass the test, he contends – including an incident last weekend, when a person on a Dublin street requested to take a picture with Piker, then produced a picture of his dog and yelled “Free Kaya!” Never mind the bus driver; attempting to explain the significance of that specific event might well take the rest of this article. Occupying the Gray Space Piker increasingly exists in this gray area increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the 34-year-old was familiar only to the digitally immersed, particularly Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an in-demand voice in “offline circles” for his analysis on the struggling political left, and especially that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men. A Prime Hate Figure for the Political Right Predictably, this also makes Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his c critics there is a lot to criticize: his direct political views; his cultural background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his appearance in shirtless magazine photoshoots or social media posts. “I’ll be honest, I had no clue that this is what I was going to be doing,” says Piker. “Like, if someone were to ask me, did you imagine that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?” It’s early and he’s getting ready to start his regular 11am show. He usually streams live for seven or eight hours consecutively, talking unscripted about the news, pop culture, what he’s up to, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of comments from viewers. From The Young Turks to Twitch Building himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker explains. His media career started out with The Young Turks, the left-leaning online news network. Piker’s 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 chose to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as overwhelmingly conservative, and often toxic views that infested the space. “There’s a lot of ideological variety amongst the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political expression in this arena is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he notes. The Challenge with the American Left This is the fundamental issue with the American left in general, says Piker: they’ve ceded so many arenas to the right. “You absolutely have to market your ideas … but they just completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.” Piker is consistently critical of past administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is no loyal supporter of the major center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democrat and “compassion-driven”, he clarifies. “My position is actually the standard position in much of the world.” Controversies and Criticism One of the risks of Piker’s type of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his opponents fodder. He has been suspended from Twitch multiple times for perceived offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was inappropriate. Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain state policies have led to allegations of prejudice, which he strongly rejects. He has also been ridiculed for expressing admiration for a different major global power, after a trip there. “I have no problem getting attacked by people on the right. I love when my enemies hate me,” he states. “It is what it is.” Real-World Repercussions The vitriol constantly threatens to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by American border agents on his re-entry from a trip. They questioned him about his views before letting him go. “I think they did it because they are aware of who I am,” he said. These levels of hostility help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It started with a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, yelped suddenly. Online detractors swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a prominent animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the surprise encounter 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 devastated,” he said. The Difference Between Digital and Real Worlds This illustrates 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 fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator was a shocking example of where this online hate can lead. Piker watched the event unfold in real time on his stream. Piker continues to do real-life streams in the US. “I can’t let fear guide my life. I’ve gotten death threats for over a decade,” he says. Unhealthy parasocial relationships come with the territory, he acknowledges. The Future and Staying Grounded Having been accurate about a recent election, how does Piker view the next few years? “The landscape shifts quite quickly, but if you look at the areas where there is some semblance of hope, it’s the progressive candidates that are actually really galvanising the public,” he says. He points to the progressive “left flank”. “We have to lean into that, because I feel like it’s a matter of critical importance at this point,” he continues. “So I will do everything in my power to try and avoid a worse alternative.” The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely as if Piker is interested in mainstream political office. He makes occasional media guest spots, but he’s not tempted further into traditional media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from legacy publishers.” But on top of that, he clearly enjoys it: “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 awaits, and he’s eager to get started.
Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have 30 seconds to describe any online phenomena took place to the bus driver before them turning to you and going, ‘Get off the fucking bus.’” Most online discourse, regardless of how fiery, does not pass the test, he contends – including an incident last weekend, when a person on a Dublin street requested to take a picture with Piker, then produced a picture of his dog and yelled “Free Kaya!” Never mind the bus driver; attempting to explain the significance of that specific event might well take the rest of this article. Occupying the Gray Space Piker increasingly exists in this gray area increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the 34-year-old was familiar only to the digitally immersed, particularly Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an in-demand voice in “offline circles” for his analysis on the struggling political left, and especially that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men. A Prime Hate Figure for the Political Right Predictably, this also makes Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his c critics there is a lot to criticize: his direct political views; his cultural background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his appearance in shirtless magazine photoshoots or social media posts. “I’ll be honest, I had no clue that this is what I was going to be doing,” says Piker. “Like, if someone were to ask me, did you imagine that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?” It’s early and he’s getting ready to start his regular 11am show. He usually streams live for seven or eight hours consecutively, talking unscripted about the news, pop culture, what he’s up to, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of comments from viewers. From The Young Turks to Twitch Building himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker explains. His media career started out with The Young Turks, the left-leaning online news network. Piker’s 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 chose to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as overwhelmingly conservative, and often toxic views that infested the space. “There’s a lot of ideological variety amongst the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political expression in this arena is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he notes. The Challenge with the American Left This is the fundamental issue with the American left in general, says Piker: they’ve ceded so many arenas to the right. “You absolutely have to market your ideas … but they just completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.” Piker is consistently critical of past administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is no loyal supporter of the major center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democrat and “compassion-driven”, he clarifies. “My position is actually the standard position in much of the world.” Controversies and Criticism One of the risks of Piker’s type of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his opponents fodder. He has been suspended from Twitch multiple times for perceived offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was inappropriate. Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain state policies have led to allegations of prejudice, which he strongly rejects. He has also been ridiculed for expressing admiration for a different major global power, after a trip there. “I have no problem getting attacked by people on the right. I love when my enemies hate me,” he states. “It is what it is.” Real-World Repercussions The vitriol constantly threatens to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by American border agents on his re-entry from a trip. They questioned him about his views before letting him go. “I think they did it because they are aware of who I am,” he said. These levels of hostility help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It started with a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, yelped suddenly. Online detractors swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a prominent animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the surprise encounter 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 devastated,” he said. The Difference Between Digital and Real Worlds This illustrates 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 fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator was a shocking example of where this online hate can lead. Piker watched the event unfold in real time on his stream. Piker continues to do real-life streams in the US. “I can’t let fear guide my life. I’ve gotten death threats for over a decade,” he says. Unhealthy parasocial relationships come with the territory, he acknowledges. The Future and Staying Grounded Having been accurate about a recent election, how does Piker view the next few years? “The landscape shifts quite quickly, but if you look at the areas where there is some semblance of hope, it’s the progressive candidates that are actually really galvanising the public,” he says. He points to the progressive “left flank”. “We have to lean into that, because I feel like it’s a matter of critical importance at this point,” he continues. “So I will do everything in my power to try and avoid a worse alternative.” The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely as if Piker is interested in mainstream political office. He makes occasional media guest spots, but he’s not tempted further into traditional media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from legacy publishers.” But on top of that, he clearly enjoys it: “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 awaits, and he’s eager to get started.