What is wrong with males today? This man might be the most knowledgeable.
Some of you who are reading this don’t need an introduction to Hasan Piker. With an impressive 2.9 million followers on Twitch alone, he is one of the most prominent voices in progressive political material on the internet. He is gregarious, divisive, and (kind of) a bro. And he is adored by his supporters. As an illustration, consider this Instagram comment: “Not to be dramatic, but I’d die for this man lol.”
Some have begun to wonder if Piker is the Joe Rogan of the left in light of the recent discussions about young males gravitating toward the political right due to online pundits like Theo Von and Joe Rogan. On TikTok, a fan did call Piker “the himbo gateway drug to leftist thought.”
I have been a minute host. Piker told Brittany Luse what he thinks ‘bro culture’ isn’t just for the right, what young guys are searching for now, and his caution to Democrats.
The length and clarity of this It’s Been a Minute interview have been adjusted.
Interview highlights
How can one define a “Progressive Mind in a MAGA body?”
Luse, Brittany:The headline from the New York Times’ story on you earlier this year was quite remarkable. “Hasan Piker: A Progressive Mind and a MAGA body,” was the headline. I must wonder, what exactly is a MAGA body? Are you familiar with that?
Hasan Piker: I think they were attempting to convey that there are many content producers in the manosphere who are successful. Furthermore, I doubt that most people—whether or not they read the New York Times—will think like a really wide, brooding person when you evoke the MAGA body. They will consider, I don’t know, an ordinary American, or something similar.
Brittany Luse: However, it seems like that headline made a very specific connection between masculinity and MAGA or a particular body type.
Hasan Piker: Definitely. I believe that to be intentional and incorrect. I don’t believe that MAGA is linked to masculinity. I don’t even believe that exercising is inherently linked to masculinity. What we define as manly, in my opinion, is simply self-assurance and the display of leadership abilities. When most of these folks talk about being alpha or male in general, they are referring to that.
Luse, Brittany:Why do you believe that certain hobbies, such as playing video games or working out, are conservatively coded?
Hasan PikerThey’re not necessarily conservatively coded, in my opinion. To put it simply, they are more easily labeled as apolitical. The phrase “Oh, why do you have politics in my video games?” is a very amusing and well-known meme in the gaming community. “Get politics out of my video games” is a catchphrase that has been used since Gamergate and is typically used to any video game that features a black female protagonist. “Call of Duty is not political” or “Call of Duty wasn’t political until there was a black woman in it” are examples of unironic statements made by these people. It goes without saying that Call of Duty has always been political. It occasionally criticizes American imperialism. It is practically upholding American imperialism in other cases. However, it’s always political. Simply put, many men don’t interpret it as politics when they agree with it or aren’t giving it any attention. And I believe that what occurs in many of these areas for many of these pastimes is that we give space to right-wing actors because they can frame it as though they are completely above the political sphere, as if they are not engaging in any political analysis. Avoid making too many assumptions about this. Enjoy it, please.
Is Hasan Piker the left’s Joe Rogan?
Hasan Piker: People frequently ask me whether I am the left’s Joe Rogan or if we need a left or a Joe Rogan. And I keep saying that a Joe Rogan won’t fix their problems, at least to the Democrats. Their policies must be modified. They must engage in genuine politics, you know. There was a guy out there who was genuinely doing what I was saying in an organic way. In the New York mayoral contest, he also achieved remarkable success in the Democratic primary.
Brittany Luse: “Yes, Zohran Mamdani.”
Hasan Piker”Why did you vote for Trump?” he asked. Which issues worry you the most? “These are my five policies,” he declared after identifying five of them. This is what I’m running on.” I will implement a rent freeze. It has already been done. I will make the buses free and quick. I’m going to make more housing available. To the best of my ability, I will also tax the really wealthy. And when they saw that, they said, “Well, that sounds fantastic.” That’s precisely what I’m seeking.
Brittany Luse: The victory of Zohran Mamdani has been viewed by many political analysts as a huge surprise.
Hasan Piker: I don’t mean to offend your coworkers or the traditional media, but all they use to explain Zohran’s win is that he’s young, personable, and did well on social media. Indeed. All three of those things are true. But they only played a role in highlighting the platform policies that he had. It’s actually the policies that caused people to pay attention to him.
What Hasan Piker sees online that you are missing
Hasan PikerYoung conservatives, particularly those in the political industry, seem to be much more ideologically committed to far right Nazi propaganda, Catholic Nationalism, or Christian dominionism, or whatever form of far right ideology they have created for themselves. I was just considering this the other day. It’s usually a manifestation of fascism. And I think there’s a lot more people, especially in politics, that are under the age of 35, on the Republican side, that abide by these principles than we think. So I say watch this space. There’s also another thing that I’ve been noticing where pure reactionary politics have basically turned into this incredible endeavor, where it’s so hyper focused on “owning the libs” and getting a reaction out of liberals, no matter what their reaction is. Disgust, revulsion is still, I think, considered a positive in conservative circles.
Brittany Luse:When you talk about owning the libs Anything that irritates you, is a win for me.
Hasan PikerAny kind of irritation is a win. It doesn’t matter what the punishment is for yourself, the penalties are for yourself that you’re incurring in the process. It’s like a child.
Host: Brittany LuseProducers: Alexis Williams, Neena PathakVideo Editor: Grace RaverVideographers: Courtney Theophin, Alicia Zheng, Tsering Bista, Abi InmanCamera Utilities: Bruce Grant, Allen WaldenAudio Engineers: Kwesi Lee, Cena Loffredo, Robert RodriguezSupervising Editors: Barton Girdwood, Nick MichaelExecutive Producers: Veralyn Williams, Samantha Melbourneweaver
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