From Digital Streamer to Ideological Figurehead: The Rise of Hasan Piker

Hasan Piker dubs it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have 30 seconds to clarify whatever online phenomena took place to the bus driver without them looking at you and saying, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” Most online conversation, no matter how heated, fails the test, he argues – including a strange event last weekend, when someone on a Dublin street requested to take a picture with Piker, then held up a picture of his dog and shouted “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; trying to explain the importance of this particular event could easily take the rest of this article.

Occupying the In-Between Zone

Piker finds himself in this liminal zone more and more these days. Until fairly recently, the thirty-four-year-old was known only to the digitally immersed, especially Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But since the last presidential election, Piker has transformed into an in-demand voice in “traditional media” for his views on the beleaguered political left, and especially that constantly discussed demographic, young men.

A Favorite Hate Figure for the Right

Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a favorite villain of the political right. To his enemies there is a lot to dislike: his outspoken political stances; his cultural background; his allegiances with left-wing politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies typical lefty stereotypes. He has not been afraid his physique 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 the morning and he’s getting ready to start his regular 11am show. He typically streams live for seven to eight hours consecutively, talking improvised about the news, lifestyle stories, his personal life, playing video games, engaging with memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of messages from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Solo Streaming

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform 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. His parents are Turkish immigrants, and he grew up between New Jersey and Istanbul before studying political science. He eventually hosted 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 conservative, and often toxic views that infested the space.

“You can find ideological diversity among the gamers, amongst the developers, amongst the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political commentary 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 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 consistently critical of past administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is not a loyal supporter of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democratic and “empathy-first”, he explains. “My position is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Controversies and Backlash

One of the dangers of Piker’s type of relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his critics fodder. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch multiple times for perceived offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the context 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.

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

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

Real-World Consequences

The hate constantly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American 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, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a major animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the ambush by a random in Dublin.

Piker handled the situation 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 Online and Real 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 and not 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 fatal shooting of a conservative commentator was a harrowing 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 guide my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Unhealthy one-sided fan dynamics come with the territory, he acknowledges.

The Future and Finding Balance

Having been prescient about a recent 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 references the progressive “wing”.

“We have to embrace 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 prevent a worse alternative.”

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

But on top of that, he still 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 lengthy live stream awaits, and he’s eager to get started.