From Online Commentator to Political Figurehead: The Rise of Hasan Piker

Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Imagine boarding a bus and you have half a minute to explain whatever online phenomena took place to the bus driver without them turning to you and going, ‘Leave the damn bus.’” The vast majority of online conversation, regardless of how heated, does not pass the test, he argues – not least a strange event recently, when a person on a Dublin street asked to take a picture with Piker, then held up a picture of his dog and shouted “Free Kaya!” Never mind the bus driver; attempting to explain the significance of that specific event could easily take the remainder of this article.

Occupying the Blurred Space

Piker operates in this in-between space increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was familiar only to the very online, particularly 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 “traditional media” for his perspectives on the struggling political left, and especially that constantly discussed demographic, young men.

A Prime Target for the Right

Predictably, this also positions Piker a prime villain of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to criticize: his outspoken political stances; 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 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,” states 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 late morning show. He usually streams live for seven or eight hours straight, talking unscripted about current affairs, 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

Establishing himself on Twitch, which is primarily for streaming video games, was a deliberate decision, Piker explains. His media career started out with The Young Turks, the left-leaning online news network. Piker’s 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 overwhelmingly rightwing, and often toxic views that permeated the space.

“You can find ideological variety among the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but sadly, the market for political expression in this arena is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he says.

The Problem with the American Left

This is the fundamental issue 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 just completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.”

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

Firestorms and Backlash

One of the risks of Piker’s style of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which gives his opponents ammunition. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch several times for deemed offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the framework of a broader critique, he made a comment about a historic attack that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later expressed regret and said the language was inappropriate.

Similarly, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinians and criticism of certain government actions have led to accusations of prejudice, which he strongly rejects. He has also been ridiculed for expressing praise for a different major global power, after a trip there.

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

Offline Repercussions

The vitriol increasingly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American border agents on his re-entry from travel abroad. They interrogated 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, made a noise suddenly. Online detractors jumped to the conclusion that Piker was mistreating the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent 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 clipped from his live stream and disseminated 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 highlights the difference between the offline and online worlds, he says: “It’s very difficult to maintain a very hostile energy in the real world and not coming across as unhinged and odd. Exchanges on the internet create this environment where you can be as hostile as you want.”

That Dublin encounter was fairly low stakes. In the US, he admits to feeling less safe. The fatal shooting of a conservative commentator served as 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 years,” he says. Unhealthy one-sided fan dynamics are part of the territory, he accepts.

The Future and Staying Grounded

Having been accurate about the last election, how does Piker view the next few years? “Things change quite quickly, but if you look at the avenues where there is some semblance of hope, it’s the progressive candidates that are actually truly 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 critical importance 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 doesn’t sound as if Piker is tempted in traditional political office. He makes occasional 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.”

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 awaits, and he’s itching to get started.