From Digital Commentator to Political Lightning Rod: The Ascent of Hasan Piker

Hasan Piker dubs it the bus driver test: “You get on a bus and you have 30 seconds to clarify any online drama unfolded to the bus driver before them turning to you and saying, ‘Get off the fucking bus.’” The vast majority of online discourse, regardless of how fiery, does not pass the test, he argues – not least a strange event last weekend, when someone on a Dublin street requested 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 meaning of this particular event might well take the rest of this article.

Navigating the Blurred Space

Piker finds himself in this gray area increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was familiar primarily to the very online, particularly Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But since a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an in-demand voice in “traditional media” for his views on the beleaguered political left, and specifically that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Prime Target for the Political Right

Unsurprisingly, this also positions Piker a favorite target of the political right. To his detractors there is plenty to criticize: his blunt political views; his Turkish, Muslim background; his allegiances with left-wing politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies typical lefty stereotypes. He has leveraged his appearance in shirtless magazine spreads or social media posts.

“To be frank, 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 early and he’s preparing to start his daily 11am show. He typically broadcasts live for seven or eight hours consecutively, talking improvised about current affairs, 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, a platform 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 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 provide an alternative to what he saw as dominantly conservative, and often divisive views that permeated the space.

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

The Challenge with the American Left

This is the fundamental problem with the American left in general, says Piker: they’ve conceded so many arenas to the right. “You still have to promote your ideas … but they just completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is regularly sharply critical of past 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 democratic and “empathy-first”, he explains. “My viewpoint is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Controversies and Criticism

One of the risks of Piker’s style of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which provides his critics fodder. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch multiple times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was seized upon by right-wing media outlets. Piker later expressed regret and said the language was inappropriate.

Similarly, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain government actions have led to accusations of bias, which he strongly rejects. He has also been ridiculed for expressing admiration for a different 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 states. “It is what it is.”

Real-World Consequences

The hate increasingly threatens to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American border agents on his re-entry 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 enmity help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It originated from a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, yelped suddenly. Online detractors swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, sparking a online controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a major animal rights organization issued 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 disseminated with his response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was devastated,” he said.

The Divide Between Digital 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 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 fairly low stakes. In the US, he admits to feeling less safe. The fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator served as a harrowing 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. Unhealthy parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he accepts.

The Future and Finding Balance

Having been prescient about a recent election, how does Piker feel 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 progressive candidates that are actually truly galvanising the public,” he says. He points to the progressive “wing”.

“We have to lean into that, because I feel like it’s a matter of life or death at this point,” he continues. “So I will do everything 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 mainstream political office. He makes periodic media guest spots, 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 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 eager to get started.