I don't think he's ever been a hero.
Been an interesting journalist, author and commentator.
Seems to have been spending a lot of his time recently bashing the left. The recent Greyzone attacks shows what trajectory he's on.
I have read three of his books (two political and one novel) and have got 'How To Stop Fascism' on my shelf to read. I went to see him talk about it last year as part of the Sheffield 'Off The Shelf Festival'. I disagreed with some of his views but he was well worth listening to - and he had a 'robust' debate at the end with some of his critics (all 'lefties' in your language).