From Online Streamer to Ideological Lightning Rod: The Ascent of Hasan Piker

Hasan Piker calls it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have half a minute to clarify whatever online phenomena occurred to the bus driver before them turning to you and saying, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” The vast majority of online discourse, regardless of how fiery, 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 meaning of this particular event could easily take the remainder of this article.

Occupying the Gray Space

Piker finds himself in this gray area increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the 34-year-old was familiar primarily to the digitally immersed, particularly 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 transformed into an sought-after voice in “offline circles” for his perspectives on the beleaguered political left, and specifically that inordinately discussed demographic, young men.

A Prime Hate Figure for the Right

Predictably, this also positions Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his enemies there is a lot to criticize: his blunt political stances; his Turkish, Muslim background; his allegiances with left-wing politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – does not fit stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has not been afraid his appearance in shirtless magazine photoshoots or social media posts.

“I’ll be honest, I had no idea 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 regular 11am show. He typically streams live for seven or eight hours straight, talking unscripted about the news, lifestyle stories, his personal life, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and interacting with the constant stream of comments from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Twitch

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform 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. 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 provide an alternative to what he saw as dominantly conservative, and often toxic views that infested the space.

“You can find ideological variety among the gamers, among the developers, amongst the consumers, but unfortunately, 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 fundamental issue with the American left in broad terms, argues Piker: they’ve ceded so many cultural spaces to the right. “You absolutely have to market your ideas … but they just 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 no loyal supporter of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democratic and “empathy-first”, he clarifies. “My viewpoint is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Controversies and Criticism

One of the dangers of Piker’s style of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his opponents ammunition. He has been suspended from Twitch multiple times for perceived offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the context of a broader critique, he made a statement about a historic attack that was seized upon by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was ill-chosen.

Likewise, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain state policies have led to accusations of bias, which he denies. He has also been mocked for expressing praise for a different 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.”

Real-World Consequences

The hate increasingly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by US border agents on his return from a trip. They interrogated 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 enmity help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It started with a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, yelped suddenly. Online detractors jumped to the conclusion that Piker was harming the animal, igniting a online controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a major 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 edited from his live stream and shared with his response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was shocked,” he said.

The Divide Between Online and Offline Worlds

This highlights the difference between the offline and online worlds, he explains: “It’s very difficult to maintain a very negative energy in the real world and not coming across as hysterical and odd. Exchanges on the internet foster this environment where you can be as aggressive as you want.”

That Dublin encounter was fairly low stakes. In the US, he feels less safe. The assassination of a conservative commentator served as a harrowing 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 dictate my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Toxic one-sided fan dynamics come with the territory, he acknowledges.

Looking Ahead and Staying Grounded

Having been prescient about the last election, how does Piker feel 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 truly 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 worse alternative.”

The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely 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.”

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 lengthy live stream awaits, and he’s eager to get started.