Hasan Piker on his rise as a voice of the 'insurgent left' | NPR's Newsmakers
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President Donald Trump recently called Hasan Piker a “terrible liability” and a “communist.”
The California-based streamer — who describes himself as a socialist — has become the GOP’s political bogeyman ahead of the midterm elections. Piker argues those attacks will backfire, but also says he has played a role in being portrayed as a 'figurehead of the insurgent left.'
“The way that I'm portrayed in the media is an America-hating communist Islamist fundamentalist who wants to secretly do jihad, and then also, at the same time, very woke and gay, so there's this weird inconsistency in their messaging,” Piker says. “Who I am is very simple. I'm a socialist. I'm an anti-imperialist. I want what's best for Americans, and I want what's best for everyone from all around the world.”
In this episode from NPR’s Newsmakers, Piker sits down with host Leila Fadel and argues Republicans are using him to distract from policies that made life less affordable. He also addresses his seven Twitch bans, defends his rhetoric against right-wing reactionaries, and reflects on the crisis of loneliness among young men — and the limits of his influence.
“At the end of the day, I'm a Twitch streamer,” Piker says. “I hold no political office. I have no real political power. So getting people to be upset at a Twitch streamer and their affiliation as a, if you want to call it a surrogate, in the primary is going to be very difficult.”
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The California-based streamer — who describes himself as a socialist — has become the GOP’s political bogeyman ahead of the midterm elections. Piker argues those attacks will backfire, but also says he has played a role in being portrayed as a 'figurehead of the insurgent left.'
“The way that I'm portrayed in the media is an America-hating communist Islamist fundamentalist who wants to secretly do jihad, and then also, at the same time, very woke and gay, so there's this weird inconsistency in their messaging,” Piker says. “Who I am is very simple. I'm a socialist. I'm an anti-imperialist. I want what's best for Americans, and I want what's best for everyone from all around the world.”
In this episode from NPR’s Newsmakers, Piker sits down with host Leila Fadel and argues Republicans are using him to distract from policies that made life less affordable. He also addresses his seven Twitch bans, defends his rhetoric against right-wing reactionaries, and reflects on the crisis of loneliness among young men — and the limits of his influence.
“At the end of the day, I'm a Twitch streamer,” Piker says. “I hold no political office. I have no real political power. So getting people to be upset at a Twitch streamer and their affiliation as a, if you want to call it a surrogate, in the primary is going to be very difficult.”
Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.
See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.
NPR Privacy Policy
(upbeat music) - The way that I'm portrayed in the media is an America-hating communist, Islamist fundamentalist, and then also at the same time, very woken gay. Of course, I say incendiary things, but it's not reflected on in the same way when someone who's white, Christian, born and raised in America is saying incendiary things. - Your world view has gotten you barred from travel. College campuses debate whether they should have you on their campuses. Is the price you pay for your ideas and your stances, has it gotten too high? - I think that there is no price to high to pay as long as I'm allowed to say the truth. (upbeat music) - Hi, it's Steve Enscape with a special episode of Up First, a conversation from NPR's Newsmakers. In each episode, a guest takes tough questions about their place at the center of events and how things look from the inside. Today, Leila Fodl sits down with Hassan Piker. For more newsmakers, you can follow or subscribe to the show on Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you watch or listen, and you can find us in the NPR app. - Hassan Piker is one of the most important political forces among young people today. The 35-year-old commentator does daily live streams on Twitch. That's where he calls out the Democratic Party, the Lambas Conservatives dissects the latest viral memes. His unfiltered and at times incendiary style has generated fans and fury. Piker has talked a lot recently about his political views, but we wanted to talk to him about the backlash against those views, as well as the midterms, his audience reach, and his role in the future of American politics. - Hassan Piker, welcome to Newsmakers, and thanks for being here. - This is a real honor, very exciting. I listen to NPR every morning. - Oh, you do? - Yeah. - And all the time, as a matter of fact. - So are we on your stream? - You're also on the stream all the time. You're probably on the stream right now.
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