‘I love when my enemies despise me’: the way Hasan Piker emerged as one of the largest figures on the American political left

Hasan Piker dubs it the bus driver test: “Imagine boarding a bus and you have half a minute to explain any online phenomena occurred to the bus driver without them looking at you and saying, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” Most online debate, regardless of how heated, fails the test, he argues – 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 yelled “Free Kaya!” Never mind the bus driver; trying to explain the importance of this particular event might well take the remainder of this article.

Existing in the In-Between Zone

Piker finds himself in this gray area more and more these days. Until fairly recently, the thirty-four-year-old was familiar only to the very online, particularly Americans in their twenties and thirties, largely thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an sought-after voice in “the real world” for his perspectives on the struggling political left, and specifically that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Favorite Target for the Right

Predictably, this also positions Piker a favorite hate figure of the political right. To his c critics there is plenty to criticize: his direct political views; his Turkish, Muslim background; his associations with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – does not fit stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has not been afraid his appearance in revealing magazine spreads or social media posts.

“To be frank, 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 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 late morning show. He typically streams live for seven to eight hours straight, talking off the cuff about current affairs, pop culture, his personal life, playing video games, engaging with memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of messages from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Solo Streaming

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform primarily for livestreaming video games, was a deliberate decision, Piker explains. His media career started out with The Young Turks, the progressive online news network. His parents are Turkish immigrants, and he was raised 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 decided to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as overwhelmingly conservative, and often toxic views that permeated the space.

“You can find ideological diversity amongst 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 fundamental 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 simply completely abandoned all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is consistently sharply critical of past administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is no loyal member of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democrat and “empathy-first”, he clarifies. “My viewpoint is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Firestorms and Criticism

One of the dangers of Piker’s style of relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which gives his opponents fodder. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch several times for perceived offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the context of a wider critique, he made a comment about a national tragedy that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was inappropriate.

Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and criticism of certain government actions have led to accusations of prejudice, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing admiration for another major global power, after a trip there.

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

Real-World Consequences

The vitriol constantly threatens to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American border agents on his return 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 enmity 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 harming the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a major animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the surprise encounter by a random in Dublin.

Piker handled the situation in his stride. Online, though, the encounter was clipped from his live stream and shared with his response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was devastated,” he said.

The Difference Between Online and Offline Worlds

This highlights the chasm between the offline and online worlds, he says: “It’s very hard to maintain a very negative energy in the real world without coming across as hysterical and odd. Exchanges on the internet create this environment where you can be as aggressive 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 harrowing example of where this online hate can lead. Piker watched the event unfold 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 years,” he says. Unhealthy parasocial relationships come with the territory, he acknowledges.

The Future and Staying Grounded

Having been prescient about a recent election, how does Piker view the next few years? “Things change quite rapidly, but if you look at the areas where there is some semblance of hope, it’s the left candidates that are actually really galvanising the public,” he says. He references the progressive “wing”.

“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 everything in my power to try and prevent a worse alternative.”

The American left could perhaps do with someone like Piker. But it doesn’t sound as if Piker is interested in mainstream political office. He makes occasional media appearances, but he’s not drawn further into traditional media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from legacy publishers.”

But on top of that, he still 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 lengthy live stream awaits, and he’s itching to get started.