🔗 Share this article From Digital Commentator to Political Lightning Rod: The Ascent of Hasan Piker Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have half a minute to explain whatever online event occurred to the bus driver without them looking at you and saying, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” The vast majority of online conversation, regardless of how fiery, does not pass the test, he contends – not least an incident recently, when someone 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; attempting to explain the meaning of that specific event might well take the remainder of this article. Occupying the In-Between Zone Piker finds himself in this liminal zone increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the thirty-four-year-old was familiar primarily to the digitally immersed, especially Americans in their twenties and thirties, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following the last presidential election, Piker has become an sought-after voice in “offline circles” for his perspectives on the beleaguered political left, and specifically that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men. A Prime Target for the Right Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a favorite target of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to criticize: his direct political stances; his cultural background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies typical lefty stereotypes. He has not been afraid his appearance in shirtless magazine photoshoots or social media posts. “To be frank, I had no idea that this is what I was going to be doing,” states 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 early and he’s preparing to start his regular late morning show. He usually broadcasts live for seven to eight hours consecutively, 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 livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker says. His media career began 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 decided to go solo on Twitch, to provide an alternative to what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often toxic views that infested the space. “There’s a lot of ideological variety among the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but sadly, the market for political expression in this arena is so heavily dominated by the right,” he says. The Problem with the American Left This is the fundamental problem with the American left in general, argues Piker: they’ve relinquished so many arenas to the right. “You absolutely have to market your ideas … but they simply 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 member of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are generally social democrat and “compassion-driven”, he explains. “My position is actually the normal position in much of the world.” Firestorms and Criticism One of the dangers of Piker’s type of informal, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which provides his opponents ammunition. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch several times for deemed offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the framework of a broader 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 inappropriate. Likewise, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and criticism of certain government actions have led to accusations of bias, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing praise for a different 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 states. “It is what it is.” Real-World Consequences The hate increasingly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American border agents on his re-entry from travel abroad. They interrogated him about his views 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 started with a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, made a noise suddenly. Online conspiracy theorists swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, sparking a online controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a prominent animal rights organization issued a statement. This led to the ambush 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 response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was devastated,” he said. The Divide Between Digital and Real Worlds This highlights the difference 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 unhinged and odd. Exchanges 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 feels less safe. The fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator was a harrowing 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 dictate my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Toxic parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he accepts. Looking Ahead and Finding Balance Having been accurate 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 left 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 adds. “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 tempted in mainstream political office. He makes periodic media guest spots, but he’s not tempted further into traditional media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from traditional 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 itching to get started.
Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have half a minute to explain whatever online event occurred to the bus driver without them looking at you and saying, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” The vast majority of online conversation, regardless of how fiery, does not pass the test, he contends – not least an incident recently, when someone 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; attempting to explain the meaning of that specific event might well take the remainder of this article. Occupying the In-Between Zone Piker finds himself in this liminal zone increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the thirty-four-year-old was familiar primarily to the digitally immersed, especially Americans in their twenties and thirties, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following the last presidential election, Piker has become an sought-after voice in “offline circles” for his perspectives on the beleaguered political left, and specifically that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men. A Prime Target for the Right Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a favorite target of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to criticize: his direct political stances; his cultural background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies typical lefty stereotypes. He has not been afraid his appearance in shirtless magazine photoshoots or social media posts. “To be frank, I had no idea that this is what I was going to be doing,” states 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 early and he’s preparing to start his regular late morning show. He usually broadcasts live for seven to eight hours consecutively, 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 livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker says. His media career began 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 decided to go solo on Twitch, to provide an alternative to what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often toxic views that infested the space. “There’s a lot of ideological variety among the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but sadly, the market for political expression in this arena is so heavily dominated by the right,” he says. The Problem with the American Left This is the fundamental problem with the American left in general, argues Piker: they’ve relinquished so many arenas to the right. “You absolutely have to market your ideas … but they simply 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 member of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are generally social democrat and “compassion-driven”, he explains. “My position is actually the normal position in much of the world.” Firestorms and Criticism One of the dangers of Piker’s type of informal, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which provides his opponents ammunition. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch several times for deemed offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the framework of a broader 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 inappropriate. Likewise, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and criticism of certain government actions have led to accusations of bias, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing praise for a different 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 states. “It is what it is.” Real-World Consequences The hate increasingly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American border agents on his re-entry from travel abroad. They interrogated him about his views 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 started with a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, made a noise suddenly. Online conspiracy theorists swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, sparking a online controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a prominent animal rights organization issued a statement. This led to the ambush 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 response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was devastated,” he said. The Divide Between Digital and Real Worlds This highlights the difference 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 unhinged and odd. Exchanges 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 feels less safe. The fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator was a harrowing 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 dictate my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Toxic parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he accepts. Looking Ahead and Finding Balance Having been accurate 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 left 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 adds. “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 tempted in mainstream political office. He makes periodic media guest spots, but he’s not tempted further into traditional media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from traditional 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 itching to get started.