🔗 Share this article From Digital Commentator to Political Figurehead: The Ascent of Hasan Piker Hasan Piker refers to it an everyday benchmark: “You get on a bus and you have a brief moment to explain any online event took place to the bus driver without them looking at you and going, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” Most online debate, regardless of how intense, does not pass the test, he argues – 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!” Never mind the bus driver; trying to explain the meaning of that specific event might well take the remainder of this article. Navigating the In-Between Space Piker finds himself in this in-between space more and more these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was familiar only to the very online, especially Americans in their 20s and 30s, largely thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an sought-after voice in “traditional media” for his perspectives on the struggling political left, and specifically that inordinately discussed demographic, young men. A Favorite Target for the Political Right Unsurprisingly, this also positions Piker a favorite hate figure of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to dislike: his outspoken political stances; his Turkish, Muslim background; his associations 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 appearance 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,” states 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 late morning show. He typically streams live for seven or eight hours consecutively, talking unscripted about the news, pop culture, what he’s up to, playing video games, engaging with memes and media clips, and responding to the never-ending stream of messages from viewers. From The Young Turks to Solo Streaming Building himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker says. His media career began 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 eventually hosted his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he chose to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often divisive views that permeated the space. “There’s a lot of ideological diversity amongst 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 notes. The Problem with the American Left This is the core problem with the American left in general, argues Piker: they’ve ceded so many cultural spaces to the right. “You still have to market your ideas … but they simply completely abandoned all notion of marketing or branding.” Piker is regularly sharply 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 clarifies. “My viewpoint is actually the standard position in most of the world.” Controversies and Backlash One of the dangers of Piker’s type of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his critics fodder. 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 wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was ill-chosen. Similarly, Piker’s outspoken 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 praise for another major global power, after a trip there. “I have no issues getting attacked by people on the right. I love when my enemies hate me,” he says. “It is what it is.” Real-World Consequences The hate increasingly threatens 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 political opinions 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, made a noise suddenly. Online detractors jumped to the conclusion that Piker was mistreating the animal, sparking a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the surprise encounter 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 reply edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was shocked,” he said. The Divide Between Digital and Offline Worlds This illustrates the chasm between the offline and online worlds, he explains: “It’s very difficult to maintain a very hostile energy in the real world without coming across as hysterical and odd. Exchanges on the internet foster 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 assassination of a right-wing 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 guide my life. I’ve gotten death threats for over a decade,” he says. Unhealthy parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he acknowledges. Looking Ahead and Finding Balance Having been accurate about a recent election, how does Piker view 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 progressive candidates that are actually really galvanising the public,” he says. He references the progressive “left flank”. “We have to embrace 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 dark alternative.” The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it doesn’t sound as if Piker is interested in traditional political office. He makes periodic media appearances, but he’s not drawn further into traditional media, he says. “Viewers is moving in my direction, and away from traditional publishers.” But on top of that, he still enjoys it: “I find a lot of personal 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 eager to get started.
Hasan Piker refers to it an everyday benchmark: “You get on a bus and you have a brief moment to explain any online event took place to the bus driver without them looking at you and going, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” Most online debate, regardless of how intense, does not pass the test, he argues – 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!” Never mind the bus driver; trying to explain the meaning of that specific event might well take the remainder of this article. Navigating the In-Between Space Piker finds himself in this in-between space more and more these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was familiar only to the very online, especially Americans in their 20s and 30s, largely thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an sought-after voice in “traditional media” for his perspectives on the struggling political left, and specifically that inordinately discussed demographic, young men. A Favorite Target for the Political Right Unsurprisingly, this also positions Piker a favorite hate figure of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to dislike: his outspoken political stances; his Turkish, Muslim background; his associations 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 appearance 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,” states 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 late morning show. He typically streams live for seven or eight hours consecutively, talking unscripted about the news, pop culture, what he’s up to, playing video games, engaging with memes and media clips, and responding to the never-ending stream of messages from viewers. From The Young Turks to Solo Streaming Building himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker says. His media career began 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 eventually hosted his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he chose to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often divisive views that permeated the space. “There’s a lot of ideological diversity amongst 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 notes. The Problem with the American Left This is the core problem with the American left in general, argues Piker: they’ve ceded so many cultural spaces to the right. “You still have to market your ideas … but they simply completely abandoned all notion of marketing or branding.” Piker is regularly sharply 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 clarifies. “My viewpoint is actually the standard position in most of the world.” Controversies and Backlash One of the dangers of Piker’s type of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his critics fodder. 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 wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was ill-chosen. Similarly, Piker’s outspoken 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 praise for another major global power, after a trip there. “I have no issues getting attacked by people on the right. I love when my enemies hate me,” he says. “It is what it is.” Real-World Consequences The hate increasingly threatens 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 political opinions 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, made a noise suddenly. Online detractors jumped to the conclusion that Piker was mistreating the animal, sparking a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the surprise encounter 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 reply edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was shocked,” he said. The Divide Between Digital and Offline Worlds This illustrates the chasm between the offline and online worlds, he explains: “It’s very difficult to maintain a very hostile energy in the real world without coming across as hysterical and odd. Exchanges on the internet foster 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 assassination of a right-wing 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 guide my life. I’ve gotten death threats for over a decade,” he says. Unhealthy parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he acknowledges. Looking Ahead and Finding Balance Having been accurate about a recent election, how does Piker view 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 progressive candidates that are actually really galvanising the public,” he says. He references the progressive “left flank”. “We have to embrace 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 dark alternative.” The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it doesn’t sound as if Piker is interested in traditional political office. He makes periodic media appearances, but he’s not drawn further into traditional media, he says. “Viewers is moving in my direction, and away from traditional publishers.” But on top of that, he still enjoys it: “I find a lot of personal 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 eager to get started.