From Digital Commentator to Ideological Lightning Rod: The Ascent of Hasan Piker

Hasan Piker dubs it an everyday benchmark: “You get on a bus and you have a brief moment to clarify whatever online event occurred to the bus driver before them looking at you and saying, ‘Get off the damn bus.’” Most online discourse, no matter how heated, fails the test, he argues – not least a strange event last weekend, when a person on a Dublin street asked to take a picture with Piker, then held up a picture of his dog and yelled “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; trying to explain the importance of this particular event might well take the rest of this article.

Navigating the In-Between Zone

Piker operates in this liminal zone increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the thirty-four-year-old was familiar only to the digitally immersed, especially Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But since the last presidential election, Piker has become an in-demand voice in “the real world” for his analysis on the struggling political left, and especially that constantly fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Favorite Target for the 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 stances; his cultural background; his associations with progressive politicians. But they also take issue with the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – does not fit stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has not been afraid his physique in shirtless magazine spreads or social media posts.

“I’ll be honest, I had no clue that this is what I was going to be doing,” says Piker. “For instance, 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 the morning and he’s getting ready to start his daily 11am show. He typically streams live for seven to eight hours straight, talking off the cuff about current affairs, lifestyle stories, what he’s up to, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of messages from viewers.

From The Young Turks to Twitch

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform primarily for streaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker explains. His media career began with The Young Turks, the progressive online news network. His parents are Turkish immigrants, and he grew up between New Jersey and Istanbul before majoring in political science. He graduated to his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he decided to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as overwhelmingly rightwing, and often divisive views that permeated the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological variety among the gamers, amongst the developers, amongst the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political expression in this hobby is so heavily dominated by the right,” he notes.

The Problem with the American Left

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

Piker is regularly critical of past administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is not a loyal member of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democrat and “empathy-first”, he explains. “My viewpoint is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Controversies and Backlash

One of the dangers of Piker’s type of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which gives his opponents fodder. He has been suspended from Twitch several times for perceived offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a wider critique, he made a statement about a historic attack that was seized upon by right-wing media outlets. Piker later expressed regret and said the wording was ill-chosen.

Similarly, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain state policies have led to accusations of bias, which he strongly rejects. He has also been ridiculed for expressing admiration for another major global power, after a trip there.

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

Offline Consequences

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

These levels of hostility help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It originated from a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, made a noise suddenly. Online conspiracy theorists jumped to the conclusion that Piker was mistreating the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a major animal rights organization issued a statement. This led to the surprise encounter by a random in Dublin.

Piker took that encounter in his stride. Online, though, the encounter was edited from his live stream and shared 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 hard to maintain a very hostile energy in the real world and not coming across as unhinged and odd. Interactions on the internet foster this environment where you can be as hostile as you want.”

That Dublin encounter was relatively low stakes. In the US, he admits to feeling 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 are part of the territory, he acknowledges.

The Future and Finding Balance

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

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

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

But on top of that, he clearly enjoys it: “I find a lot of personal 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.