‘I love when my enemies loathe me’: the way Hasan Piker became one of the largest figures on the American left

Hasan Piker dubs it an everyday benchmark: “Imagine boarding a bus and you have 30 seconds to explain whatever online phenomena took place to the bus driver before them looking at you and saying, ‘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 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!” Never mind the bus driver; attempting to explain the significance of this particular event could easily take the rest of this article.

Navigating the In-Between Space

Piker finds himself in this gray area increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the 34-year-old was known only to the very online, especially Americans in their twenties and thirties, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But following the last presidential election, Piker has become an sought-after voice in “the real world” for his views on the struggling political left, and specifically that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Prime Target for the Political Right

Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his enemies there is plenty to criticize: his outspoken political stances; his cultural background; his allegiances with left-wing politicians. But they also take issue with the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – defies typical lefty stereotypes. He has leveraged his physique in shirtless magazine photoshoots or social media posts.

“To be frank, I had no clue 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 the morning and he’s preparing to start his daily 11am show. He typically streams live for seven to eight hours consecutively, talking improvised about the news, pop culture, his personal life, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of messages from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Twitch

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform primarily for streaming video games, was a conscious 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 eventually hosted his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he decided to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as overwhelmingly conservative, and often divisive views that infested the space.

“You can find ideological diversity among the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but sadly, the market for political expression in this hobby is so heavily dominated by the right,” he notes.

The Challenge with the American Left

This is the core problem with the American left in broad terms, argues Piker: they’ve relinquished so many arenas to the right. “You absolutely have to promote 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, especially on foreign policy, but he is not a loyal supporter of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democrat and “compassion-driven”, he explains. “My viewpoint is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Firestorms and Criticism

One of the risks of Piker’s type of informal, relatable commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which provides his opponents fodder. He has been suspended from Twitch several times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a broader critique, he made a statement about a historic attack that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the wording was ill-chosen.

Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain state policies have led to allegations of prejudice, 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 vilified by people on the right. I love when my enemies hate me,” he states. “It is what it is.”

Real-World Repercussions

The vitriol constantly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by US border agents on his return from a trip. They questioned him about his views before releasing him. “I think they did it because they know who I am,” he said.

These levels of hostility help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It originated from a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, yelped suddenly. Online detractors jumped to the conclusion that Piker was mistreating the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “collargate.” 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 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 Digital and Offline Worlds

This highlights the difference between the offline and online worlds, he explains: “It’s very hard to maintain a very hostile energy in the real world without coming across as hysterical 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 admits to feeling less safe. The fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator served as a shocking example of where this online hate can lead. 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 guide 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 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 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 worse alternative.”

The American left could perhaps do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely as if Piker is interested in mainstream political office. He makes periodic media guest spots, 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 emotional fulfilment in what I do.” As he’s talking, he’s got one eye on the clock. Another marathon live stream awaits, and he’s itching to get started.