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

Hasan Piker dubs it an everyday benchmark: “Imagine boarding a bus and you have 30 seconds to explain any online drama unfolded to the bus driver before them turning to you and going, ‘Get off the damn bus.’” The vast majority of online conversation, regardless of how fiery, does not pass the test, he contends – not least an incident recently, 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; attempting to explain the meaning of this particular event could easily take the remainder of this article.

Occupying the Gray Zone

Piker finds himself in this in-between space more and more these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was known only to the digitally immersed, particularly Americans in their 20s and 30s, largely thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following a recent presidential election, Piker has become an sought-after voice in “traditional media” for his analysis on the beleaguered political left, and especially that inordinately discussed demographic, young men.

A Favorite Hate Figure for the Political Right

Unsurprisingly, this also positions Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his c critics there is a lot to criticize: his outspoken political stances; his cultural background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his appearance in revealing magazine spreads 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 early and he’s preparing to start his regular 11am show. He typically streams live for seven or eight hours straight, 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.

From The Young Turks to Twitch

Building 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. His 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 divisive views that infested the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological diversity among the gamers, among the developers, amongst the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political commentary in this hobby is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he says.

The Problem with the American Left

This is the fundamental problem with the American left in broad terms, argues Piker: they’ve conceded so many cultural spaces to the right. “You absolutely have to market 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, particularly on foreign policy, but he is no loyal supporter of the major center-left party. His own politics are generally social democratic and “empathy-first”, he clarifies. “My position is actually the standard position in much of the world.”

Firestorms and Backlash

One of the risks of Piker’s style of relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which provides his critics fodder. 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 wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the wording was inappropriate.

Likewise, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain state policies have led to allegations of bias, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing admiration 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.”

Offline Repercussions

The hate constantly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained 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 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 detractors swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, sparking a meme-fueled 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 chasm between the offline and online worlds, he says: “It’s very difficult 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 assassination 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 dictate my life. I’ve gotten death threats for over a decade,” he says. Unhealthy one-sided fan dynamics come with the territory, he accepts.

Looking Ahead and Finding Balance

Having been prescient about a recent election, how does Piker view the next few years? “The landscape shifts 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 “left flank”.

“We have to lean into that, because I feel like it’s a matter of critical importance at this point,” he continues. “So I will do anything in my power to try and prevent a dark 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 drawn further into traditional media, he says. “Viewers is moving in my direction, and away from traditional publishers.”

And 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 is about to begin, and he’s eager to get started.