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

Hasan Piker calls it an everyday benchmark: “Imagine boarding a bus and you have a brief moment to describe any online drama took place to the bus driver before them turning to you and going, ‘Leave the damn bus.’” Most online conversation, regardless of how fiery, does not pass the test, he argues – including a strange event 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!” Forget the bus driver; trying to explain the significance of that specific event might well take the rest of this article.

Occupying the Blurred Zone

Piker increasingly exists in this liminal zone more and more these days. Until relatively recently, the 34-year-old was known only to the very online, especially Americans in their twenties and thirties, mostly thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But since a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an sought-after voice in “offline circles” for his perspectives on the beleaguered political left, and especially that constantly discussed demographic, young men.

A Favorite Hate Figure for the Political Right

Predictably, this also positions Piker a favorite hate figure of the political right. To his c critics there is a lot to dislike: his blunt political stances; his Turkish, Muslim background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also take issue with the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – does not fit typical lefty stereotypes. He has not been afraid his appearance 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,” states Piker. “For instance, 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 daily late morning show. He typically broadcasts live for seven or eight hours consecutively, talking off the cuff about the news, lifestyle stories, 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

Establishing himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a deliberate decision, Piker explains. His media career began with The Young Turks, the progressive 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 decided to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as dominantly conservative, and often toxic views that permeated the space.

“You can find ideological diversity amongst the gamers, among the developers, amongst the consumers, but sadly, the market for political expression in this arena is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he says.

The Challenge with the American Left

This is the core problem with the American left in general, argues Piker: they’ve conceded so many battlegrounds 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 consistently sharply critical of past administrations on his show, particularly on foreign policy, but he is no loyal member of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are generally social democratic and “compassion-driven”, he clarifies. “My viewpoint is actually the normal position in much of the world.”

Firestorms and Backlash

One of the dangers of Piker’s style of relaxed, accessible commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which provides his critics ammunition. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch multiple times for perceived offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the context of a broader critique, he made a comment about a national tragedy that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was ill-chosen.

Likewise, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinian rights and condemnation of certain government actions have led to accusations of bias, which he denies. He has also been mocked for expressing admiration for another major global power, after a trip there.

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

Offline Consequences

The vitriol constantly threatens to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by US border agents on his re-entry from a trip. They questioned him about his political opinions before letting him go. “I think they did it because they are aware of 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, yelped suddenly. Online detractors jumped to the conclusion that Piker was mistreating the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent animal rights organization issued a statement. This led to the surprise encounter by a random in Dublin.

Piker handled the situation 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 Online and Offline Worlds

This illustrates the difference between the offline and online worlds, he says: “It’s very hard to maintain a very negative energy in the real world without coming across as hysterical and odd. Interactions on the internet foster this environment where you can be as aggressive 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 shocking example of where this online hate can lead. Piker watched the event develop 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 over a decade,” he says. Unhealthy parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he accepts.

The Future and Staying Grounded

Having been prescient about a recent election, how does Piker view the next few years? “Things change quite rapidly, but if you look at the areas where there is some glimmer of hope, it’s the progressive candidates that are actually really galvanising the public,” he says. He points to 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 prevent a worse alternative.”

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

But on top of that, he still finds it fulfilling: “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 is about to begin, and he’s itching to get started.