‘I adore when my foes despise me’: the way Hasan Piker rose to become one of the biggest voices on the American political left

Hasan Piker dubs it an everyday benchmark: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have 30 seconds to explain any online event took place to the bus driver without them turning to you and saying, ‘Get off the damn bus.’” The vast majority of online debate, regardless of how intense, does not pass the test, he says – not least an incident last weekend, when a person on a Dublin street asked to take a picture with Piker, then produced a picture of his dog and yelled “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; attempting to explain the significance of this particular event could easily take the remainder of this article.

Navigating the Blurred Zone

Piker increasingly exists in this liminal zone increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the 34-year-old was familiar only to the very online, especially Americans in their twenties and thirties, largely thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But since the last presidential election, Piker has become an sought-after voice in “offline circles” for his perspectives on the struggling political left, and especially that constantly fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Favorite Hate Figure for the Right

Unsurprisingly, this also positions Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his c critics there is plenty to dislike: his direct political views; his cultural background; his allegiances 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 revealing magazine spreads or social media posts.

“To be frank, I had no clue that this is what I was going to be doing,” states 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 the morning and he’s getting ready to start his regular late morning show. He typically streams live for seven to eight hours straight, talking improvised about the news, lifestyle stories, what he’s up to, playing video games, engaging with memes and media clips, and interacting with the constant 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 started out 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 chose to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as dominantly conservative, and often divisive views that infested the space.

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

The Problem with the American Left

This is the core problem with the American left in broad terms, says Piker: they’ve ceded so many arenas to the right. “You absolutely have to market your ideas … but they just completely abandoned all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is consistently sharply critical of recent administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is no loyal supporter of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are generally social democrat and “compassion-driven”, he explains. “My viewpoint is actually the standard position in most of the world.”

Firestorms and Backlash

One of the risks of Piker’s style of relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which provides his opponents ammunition. He has been suspended from Twitch several times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a broader critique, he made a comment about a national tragedy that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later expressed regret and said the language was ill-chosen.

Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinian rights and condemnation of certain government actions have led to allegations of prejudice, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing praise for another major global power, after a trip there.

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

Real-World Repercussions

The hate constantly risks 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 releasing him. “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 conspiracy theorists swiftly concluded that Piker was mistreating the animal, sparking a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent animal rights organization issued a statement. This led to the ambush by a stranger 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 devastated,” he said.

The Difference Between Digital and Offline Worlds

This illustrates the chasm between the offline and online worlds, he explains: “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 conservative commentator was a shocking example of where this online hate can end up. Piker watched the event develop in real time on his stream.

Piker continues to do real-life streams in the US. “I can’t let fear dictate my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Toxic one-sided fan dynamics are part of the territory, he accepts.

The Future and Finding Balance

Having been accurate about the last election, how does Piker view the next few years? “Things change quite quickly, but if you look at the avenues 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 everything in my power to try and avoid a dark alternative.”

The American left could perhaps do with someone like Piker. But it doesn’t sound as if Piker is tempted in traditional political office. He makes periodic media appearances, but he’s not drawn further into legacy media, he says. “The audience 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.