Conservative commentator Scott Jennings is reportedly facing the possibility of a defamation lawsuit from left-wing Twitch streamer Hasan Piker after accusing him of “calling for Black voters to be lynched” while airing a heavily edited compilation of clips.
Piker told Status that legal action now appeared “unavoidable” following comments Jennings made on his nationally syndicated radio show last Tuesday.
Jennings, a CNN contributor who has also been floated as a potential successor to former White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, connected Piker to Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, whom the streamer had campaigned with.
“Now El-Sayed’s best friend is out there calling for Black voters to be lynched,” Jennings said.
“Beneath all the smiles and dancing videos, there’s nothing but hate and violence in the heart of these communists,” he added.
Jennings later promoted the segment on social media.
But fact-checking website Snopes subsequently challenged Jennings’ characterization, saying the footage he circulated presented Piker’s remarks without their complete context and, in some instances, placed his comments out of order.
According to Snopes, a review of Piker’s unedited remarks showed that Jennings had falsely claimed the streamer supported bringing back lynchings. The outlet said Piker’s comments about lynchings were sarcastic responses to a message posted by a user in his chat and to opinions expressed by another person in a separate video.
Piker told Status that he and his attorneys were preparing to take legal action.
“This kind of defamation is completely unacceptable,” Piker said.
He argued that the controversy reflected what he described as a broader credibility problem involving mainstream media.
“It’s exactly how normal people perceive mainstream media to operate, and it’s a real crisis of credibility,” Piker said. “I think someone has to push back against it at some point.”
Piker acknowledged that his hours-long livestreams have resulted in controversial comments, but maintained that clips shared online frequently remove important context surrounding his remarks.
“Even like the 10 seconds prior they don’t watch. Or 10 seconds after, from these heavily edited [clips],” Piker told Status.
He said he believes some people simply do not understand the livestreaming format and added that he does not necessarily blame them for that.
However, Piker argued that others understand the format and deliberately use edited clips against him.
“I don’t think Scott Jennings knows what Twitch is,” Piker said. “I don’t think he understands the format that I occupy.”
Piker also told Status that Jennings may not be the only media figure facing potential legal action.
The Twitch streamer said he was weighing a lawsuit against Fox News host Harris Faulkner, who reported on Jennings’ edited clips.
Piker also claimed the controversy has resulted in a significant increase in threats against him.
“I am getting inundated with death threats, so much more than ever before,” Piker said.
Still, the streamer suggested that receiving such threats was not an entirely new experience for him, adding, “It’s nothing I haven’t grown accustomed to.”