‘I relish when my foes hate me’: how Hasan Piker emerged as a leading the most prominent figures on the US political left

Hasan Piker refers to it the bus driver test: “Imagine boarding a bus and you have 30 seconds to describe any online drama occurred to the bus driver before them turning to you and saying, ‘Get off the fucking bus.’” The vast majority of online discourse, no matter how intense, fails the test, he contends – not least a strange event recently, when a person on a Dublin street requested to take a picture with Piker, then held up a picture of his dog and shouted “Free Kaya!” Never mind the bus driver; trying to explain the importance of that specific event might well take the remainder of this article.

Occupying the Gray Zone

Piker increasingly exists in this liminal zone more and more these days. Until fairly recently, the thirty-four-year-old was familiar primarily to the very online, especially Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But since the last presidential election, Piker has become an in-demand voice in “the real world” for his views on the struggling political left, and specifically that inordinately discussed demographic, young men.

A Favorite Hate Figure for the Political Right

Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a prime target of the political right. To his detractors there is plenty to criticize: his blunt political views; his Turkish, Muslim background; his associations with left-wing politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – defies typical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his physique in shirtless magazine spreads or social media posts.

“I’ll be honest, I had no idea 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 getting ready to start his daily 11am show. He usually streams live for seven to eight hours consecutively, talking unscripted about current affairs, pop culture, what he’s up to, playing video games, engaging with memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of comments from viewers.

From The Young Turks to Twitch

Establishing himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker says. 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 majoring in political science. He graduated to his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he chose to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as overwhelmingly conservative, and often toxic views that infested the space.

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

The Challenge 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 still have to promote your ideas … but they just completely abandoned all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is consistently critical of recent administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is not a loyal supporter of the major center-left party. His own politics are generally social democratic and “empathy-first”, he explains. “My position is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Controversies and Criticism

One of the dangers of Piker’s type of relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which provides his critics ammunition. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch several times for perceived offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the context of a broader critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was seized upon by right-wing media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the wording was inappropriate.

Likewise, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinian rights 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 attacked by people on the right. I relish when my enemies hate me,” he says. “It is what it is.”

Real-World Consequences

The vitriol constantly threatens to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by US border agents on his re-entry from travel abroad. They questioned him about his views 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, made a noise suddenly. Online detractors swiftly concluded that Piker was mistreating the animal, sparking a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” 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 devastated,” he said.

The Divide Between Digital 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 unhinged and odd. Interactions 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 fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator was a shocking example of where this online hate can end up. 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. Toxic parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he accepts.

Looking Ahead and Staying Grounded

Having been accurate about the last election, how does Piker feel the next few years? “Things change quite quickly, 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 “left flank”.

“We have to embrace that, because I feel like it’s a matter of life or death at this point,” he adds. “So I will do anything in my power to try and avoid a dark alternative.”

The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely as if Piker is interested in mainstream political office. He makes periodic media appearances, but he’s not drawn further into traditional 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.