Last week CNN got their hands on a Tesla Model 3 with Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta installed. A reporter took the car for a drive through Brooklyn, New York, a tough test for even an experienced human driver.
It was the first time behind the wheel of a FSD Beta car for CNN’s Transportation Editor Michael Ballaban. Unsurprisingly, the four-minute segment was conveniently edited to be a hit piece against the software, showing only the negatives and leaving out many important details.
The video generated a lot of discussion online, from criticism about an inexperienced person taking FSD Beta for the first time onto busy inner-city streets, to comments that the system is still not close to a full public release, and was therefore fairly accurate.
The video was so one-sided, even CEO Elon Musk chimed in saying the story was likely written before they even got behind the wheel.
Fortunately the owner of the Model 3, Jason, was sitting in the back seat recording the drive himself, and now we get to see the other side of the story.
Jason shared about 5 minutes of edited footage to show the times the car did what it was supposed to, and the times when Ballaban was complementary of FSD Beta.
After seeing both videos, it is clear to see that the story could have been completely different if CNN had chosen to focus on the positives. They could have talked about the progress the system has made over the year it has been on public streets, or interviewed the owner to get his take on FSD beta.
Instead they chose to go with a one-sided sensationalistic story because, as Jason points out, they probably thought it would get them more views.
You can check out both videos below.
