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

Hasan Piker dubs it a simple litmus test: “You get on a bus and you have a brief moment to clarify any online event took place to the bus driver without them turning to you and saying, ‘Leave the damn bus.’” The vast majority of online debate, regardless of how heated, 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 produced a picture of his dog and shouted “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; attempting to explain the meaning of this particular event might well take the remainder of this article.

Navigating the In-Between Space

Piker finds himself in this in-between space increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the thirty-four-year-old was familiar primarily to the very online, particularly Americans in their twenties and thirties, mostly thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But following a recent presidential election, Piker has become an in-demand voice in “the real world” for his analysis on the struggling political left, and specifically that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Favorite Target 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 dislike: his outspoken political views; his Turkish, Muslim background; his associations with progressive politicians. But they also take issue with the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies typical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his physique in revealing magazine photoshoots or social media posts.

“To be frank, 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 ever think that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?”

It’s early and he’s getting ready to start his daily 11am show. He usually broadcasts live for seven to eight hours straight, talking off the cuff about the news, pop culture, what he’s up to, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of comments from viewers.

From The Young Turks to Solo Streaming

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform primarily for streaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker explains. 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 eventually hosted his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he chose to go solo on Twitch, to provide an alternative to what he saw as dominantly conservative, and often divisive views that infested the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological diversity among the gamers, amongst the developers, amongst the consumers, but sadly, the market for political commentary in this hobby 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 still 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, especially on foreign policy, but he is no loyal member of the major center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democratic and “compassion-driven”, he explains. “My viewpoint is actually the normal position in much of the world.”

Controversies and Criticism

One of the risks of Piker’s style of relaxed, accessible commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which provides his opponents fodder. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch several times for perceived offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the framework of a broader critique, he made a comment about a national tragedy that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later expressed regret and said the language was inappropriate.

Likewise, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain government actions have led to allegations of bias, 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 love when my enemies hate me,” he states. “It is what it is.”

Offline Consequences

The vitriol increasingly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by US 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 enmity help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It started with a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, made a noise suddenly. Online detractors swiftly concluded that Piker was mistreating the animal, sparking a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a major animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the ambush by a stranger in Dublin.

Piker took that encounter in his stride. Online, though, the encounter was edited from his live stream and disseminated 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 explains: “It’s very hard to maintain a very negative energy in the real world and not coming across as hysterical and odd. Exchanges on the internet create 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 assassination of a right-wing commentator served as a shocking example of where this online hate can lead. Piker watched the event unfold 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. Unhealthy one-sided fan dynamics come with the territory, he acknowledges.

Looking Ahead and Staying Grounded

Having been prescient about a recent election, how does Piker feel the next few years? “The landscape shifts quite quickly, but if you look at the avenues 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 critical importance at this point,” he continues. “So I will do anything in my power to try and avoid a worse 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 traditional publishers.”

But on top of that, he clearly finds it fulfilling: “I find a lot of personal 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.