Skip to main content
Glama

Get GDELT TV Clips

gdelt_get_tv_clips
Read-only

Retrieve the top matching TV news clips for a query from the Internet Archive's Television News Archive: fetches up to 3,000 and returns as many as fit a 48,000-byte response — the rest are counted in withheldCount, with a continuation to reach them. Each clip includes show name, station, air timestamp, a 15-second transcript excerpt, and a direct link to view the full one-minute clip. Use after gdelt_search_tv to read the actual transcript content driving a coverage spike. GDELT answers TV windows in whole clock hours; clips it returns from outside an explicit startDatetime/endDatetime window are dropped, and continuing a cut response at maxRecords 3000 leaves room for them. 3,000 is a hard per-call ceiling and GDELT offers no cursor: when a query fills it or a response comes back cut, re-query narrower startDatetime/endDatetime windows — the response hands back the exact windows to use. Archive coverage spans 2009–October 2024.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema
NameRequiredDescriptionDefault
sortNoSort order: relevance (default), dateDesc (newest first), dateAsc (oldest first).relevance
queryYesSearch query for TV transcript content. Same TV operators as gdelt_search_tv: station:CNN, network:CBS, market:"National", show:"Anderson Cooper", context:"vaccine".
stationsNoStation IDs to filter to (e.g. ["CNN", "FOXNEWS"]). The GDELT TV API requires at least one station — supply it here, or embed a station: selector directly in query. Omitting both is rejected; it does not fall back to all stations. Use gdelt_list_tv_stations to see valid IDs.
timespanNoTime window, e.g. "1m", "6m". Ignored when startDatetime/endDatetime are set. TV data spans 2009–October 2024.
maxRecordsNoMaximum number of clips to fetch (1–3000); the response carries as many of them as fit its 48,000-byte budget. 3000 is GDELT's hard per-call ceiling, not a page size — there is no cursor past it, so a query that fills 3000 must be split into narrower startDatetime/endDatetime windows instead.
endDatetimeNoEnd datetime in GDELT format YYYYMMDDHHMMSS — exactly 14 digits, no separators (e.g. 20200131235959). Must pair with startDatetime; supplying only one of the two is rejected.
startDatetimeNoStart datetime in GDELT format YYYYMMDDHHMMSS — exactly 14 digits, no separators (e.g. 20200101000000). Must pair with endDatetime; supplying only one of the two is rejected.

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema
NameRequiredDescriptionDefault
clipsNoMatching TV clips sorted per the sort parameter.
errorNoPresent when the call failed. Absent on success.
noticeNoGuidance on an incomplete or empty result. When no clips matched, the resolved timespan window and how to target the 2009–October 2024 archive or verify station IDs. When GDELT returned clips aired outside the requested window (it answers whole clock hours), how many were dropped. When the response was cut to its 48,000-byte budget, how many clips it withheld and the route to them. When the maxRecords cap was reached on an uncut response, that more clips may exist — a higher maxRecords below the 3000 ceiling, or a narrower date window at it. Absent when a non-empty result set fit under both the cap and the budget.
totalCountNoNumber of clips returned.
withheldCountNoIn-window clips GDELT returned that this response withheld to stay within its 48,000-byte budget — fetched minus returned, not counting clips dropped for falling outside the window. Absent when every in-window clip fit.
effectiveQueryNoEchoed query string for use in follow-up calls.
continuationWindowsNoWindows to re-run this query against, one at a time, when more clips are out of reach of this response. For a response cut to its budget under dateDesc or dateAsc: one window resuming from the last returned clip, reaching back to the second it aired, so clips from that second come back again — de-duplicate by archiveUrl — or, when resuming there cannot reach a new clip, one window skipping past that second. Otherwise — maxRecords at its 3000 ceiling, or a relevance cut — the queried window split in two, on a clock hour when one falls inside it; the halves share no second. Absent when no window is known, or none would reach further.

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

  1. Changed6 schema fields changed
    • changedInput schema / properties / maxRecords / description
      Previous value: -"Maximum number of clips to return (1–3000). 3000 is GDELT's hard per-call ceiling, not a page size — there is no cursor past it, so a query that fills 3000 must be split into narrower startDatetime/endDatetime windows instead."New value: +"Maximum number of clips to fetch (1–3000); the response carries as many of them as fit its 48,000-byte budget. 3000 is GDELT's hard per-call ceiling, not a page size — there is no cursor past it, so a query that fills 3000 must be split into narrower startDatetime/endDatetime windows instead."
    • changedOutput schema / properties / continuationWindows / description
      Previous value: -"The queried window halved, to re-run this query against one pair at a time when maxRecords is at its 3000 ceiling. The halves overlap by one second so no clip falls through the seam; a clip aired on that second can come back in both, so de-duplicate by archiveUrl. Absent unless the ceiling was reached with a window that is both known and wide enough to divide."New value: +"Windows to re-run this query against, one at a time, when more clips are out of reach of this response. For a response cut to its budget under dateDesc or dateAsc: one window resuming from the last returned clip, reaching back to the second it aired, so clips from that second come back again — de-duplicate by archiveUrl — or, when resuming there cannot reach a new clip, one window skipping past that second. Otherwise — maxRecords at its 3000 ceiling, or a relevance cut — the queried window split in two, on a clock hour when one falls inside it; the halves share no second. Absent when no window is known, or none would reach further."
    • changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / description
      Previous value: -"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `no_clips`: No TV clips matched the query in the specified time range. `invalid_date_range`: Only one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied, one of them is not a real UTC calendar timestamp, or startDatetime is not earlier than endDatetime. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_rate_limited`: GDELT rejected the request for its one-request-per-five-seconds limit, or too many requests were already queued for this one to start in time. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or temporarily returned no usable data. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."New value: +"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `invalid_date_range`: Only one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied, one of them is not a real UTC calendar timestamp, or startDatetime is not earlier than endDatetime. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_rate_limited`: GDELT rejected the request for its one-request-per-five-seconds limit, or too many requests were already queued for this one to start in time. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or temporarily returned no usable data. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."
    • changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / examples
      Previous value: -[
      -  "no_clips",
      -  "invalid_date_range",
      -  "invalid_query",
      -  "gdelt_rate_limited",
      -  "gdelt_unavailable"
      -]New value: +[
      +  "invalid_date_range",
      +  "invalid_query",
      +  "gdelt_rate_limited",
      +  "gdelt_unavailable"
      +]
    • changedOutput schema / properties / notice / description
      Previous value: -"Disclosure that the maxRecords cap was reached and more clips may exist, naming the route to them — a higher maxRecords below the 3000 ceiling, or a narrower date window at it. Absent when the full result set fit under the cap."New value: +"Guidance on an incomplete or empty result. When no clips matched, the resolved timespan window and how to target the 2009–October 2024 archive or verify station IDs. When GDELT returned clips aired outside the requested window (it answers whole clock hours), how many were dropped. When the response was cut to its 48,000-byte budget, how many clips it withheld and the route to them. When the maxRecords cap was reached on an uncut response, that more clips may exist — a higher maxRecords below the 3000 ceiling, or a narrower date window at it. Absent when a non-empty result set fit under both the cap and the budget."
    • addedOutput schema / properties / withheldCount
      Added value: +{
      +  "description": "In-window clips GDELT returned that this response withheld to stay within its 48,000-byte budget — fetched minus returned, not counting clips dropped for falling outside the window. Absent when every in-window clip fit.",
      +  "type": "number"
      +}
  2. Changed1 schema field changed
    • changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / description
      Previous value: -"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `no_clips`: No TV clips matched the query in the specified time range. `invalid_date_range`: Exactly one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_rate_limited`: GDELT rejected the request for its one-request-per-five-seconds limit, or too many requests were already queued for this one to start in time. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or temporarily returned no usable data. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."New value: +"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `no_clips`: No TV clips matched the query in the specified time range. `invalid_date_range`: Only one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied, one of them is not a real UTC calendar timestamp, or startDatetime is not earlier than endDatetime. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_rate_limited`: GDELT rejected the request for its one-request-per-five-seconds limit, or too many requests were already queued for this one to start in time. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or temporarily returned no usable data. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."
  3. Changed1 schema field changed
    • changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / description
      Previous value: -"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `no_clips`: No TV clips matched the query in the specified time range. `invalid_date_range`: Exactly one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_rate_limited`: GDELT rejected the request because its one-request-per-five-seconds limit was reached. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or temporarily returned no usable data. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."New value: +"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `no_clips`: No TV clips matched the query in the specified time range. `invalid_date_range`: Exactly one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_rate_limited`: GDELT rejected the request for its one-request-per-five-seconds limit, or too many requests were already queued for this one to start in time. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or temporarily returned no usable data. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."
  4. Changed2 schema fields changed
    • changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / description
      Previous value: -"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `no_clips`: No TV clips matched the query in the specified time range. `invalid_date_range`: Exactly one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or rate-limited. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."New value: +"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `no_clips`: No TV clips matched the query in the specified time range. `invalid_date_range`: Exactly one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_rate_limited`: GDELT rejected the request because its one-request-per-five-seconds limit was reached. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or temporarily returned no usable data. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."
    • changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / examples
      Previous value: -[
      -  "no_clips",
      -  "invalid_date_range",
      -  "invalid_query",
      -  "gdelt_unavailable"
      -]New value: +[
      +  "no_clips",
      +  "invalid_date_range",
      +  "invalid_query",
      +  "gdelt_rate_limited",
      +  "gdelt_unavailable"
      +]
  5. Changed6 schema fields changed
    • changedInput schema / $schema
      Previous value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"New value: +"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
    • addedInput schema / additionalProperties
      Added value: +false
    • changedOutput schema / $schema
      Previous value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"New value: +"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
    • addedOutput schema / anyOf
      Added value: +[
      +  {
      +    "not": {
      +      "required": [
      +        "error"
      +      ]
      +    },
      +    "required": [
      +      "clips",
      +      "effectiveQuery",
      +      "totalCount"
      +    ]
      +  },
      +  {
      +    "required": [
      +      "error"
      +    ]
      +  }
      +]
    • addedOutput schema / properties / error
      Added value: +{
      +  "additionalProperties": {},
      +  "description": "Present when the call failed. Absent on success.",
      +  "properties": {
      +    "code": {
      +      "description": "JSON-RPC error code for this failure.",
      +      "maximum": 9007199254740991,
      +      "minimum": -9007199254740991,
      +      "type": "integer"
      +    },
      +    "data": {
      +      "additionalProperties": {},
      +      "properties": {
      +        "reason": {
      +          "description": "Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `no_clips`: No TV clips matched the query in the specified time range. `invalid_date_range`: Exactly one of startDatetime / endDatetime was supplied. `invalid_query`: GDELT rejected the query — no station was selected, or the query string is malformed. `gdelt_unavailable`: GDELT TV API is unreachable or rate-limited. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler.",
      +          "examples": [
      +            "no_clips",
      +            "invalid_date_range",
      +            "invalid_query",
      +            "gdelt_unavailable"
      +          ],
      +          "type": "string"
      +        },
      +        "recovery": {
      +          "additionalProperties": {},
      +          "description": "Actionable next step for the caller.",
      +          "properties": {
      +            "hint": {
      +              "type": "string"
      +            }
      +          },
      +          "required": [
      +            "hint"
      +          ],
      +          "type": "object"
      +        },
      +        "retryable": {
      +          "description": "Whether retrying may succeed.",
      +          "type": "boolean"
      +        }
      +      },
      +      "type": "object"
      +    },
      +    "message": {
      +      "description": "Human-readable description of what went wrong.",
      +      "type": "string"
      +    }
      +  },
      +  "required": [
      +    "code",
      +    "message"
      +  ],
      +  "type": "object"
      +}
    • removedOutput schema / required
      Removed value: -[
      -  "clips",
      -  "effectiveQuery",
      -  "totalCount"
      -]
  6. Changed3 schema fields changed
    • changedInput schema / properties / maxRecords / description
      Previous value: -"Maximum number of clips to return (1–3000)."New value: +"Maximum number of clips to return (1–3000). 3000 is GDELT's hard per-call ceiling, not a page size — there is no cursor past it, so a query that fills 3000 must be split into narrower startDatetime/endDatetime windows instead."
    • addedOutput schema / properties / continuationWindows
      Added value: +{
      +  "description": "The queried window halved, to re-run this query against one pair at a time when maxRecords is at its 3000 ceiling. The halves overlap by one second so no clip falls through the seam; a clip aired on that second can come back in both, so de-duplicate by archiveUrl. Absent unless the ceiling was reached with a window that is both known and wide enough to divide.",
      +  "items": {
      +    "additionalProperties": false,
      +    "description": "One window to re-query with the same query string.",
      +    "properties": {
      +      "endDatetime": {
      +        "description": "End of this window in GDELT format YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.",
      +        "type": "string"
      +      },
      +      "startDatetime": {
      +        "description": "Start of this window in GDELT format YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.",
      +        "type": "string"
      +      }
      +    },
      +    "required": [
      +      "startDatetime",
      +      "endDatetime"
      +    ],
      +    "type": "object"
      +  },
      +  "type": "array"
      +}
    • changedOutput schema / properties / notice / description
      Previous value: -"Recovery hint when no clips matched. Absent on successful responses."New value: +"Disclosure that the maxRecords cap was reached and more clips may exist, naming the route to them — a higher maxRecords below the 3000 ceiling, or a narrower date window at it. Absent when the full result set fit under the cap."
  7. Changed5 schema fields changed
    • changedInput schema / properties / endDatetime / description
      Previous value: -"End datetime in GDELT format YYYYMMDDHHMMSS. Must pair with startDatetime."New value: +"End datetime in GDELT format YYYYMMDDHHMMSS — exactly 14 digits, no separators (e.g. 20200131235959). Must pair with startDatetime; supplying only one of the two is rejected."
    • addedInput schema / properties / endDatetime / pattern
      Added value: +"^\\d{14}$"
    • changedInput schema / properties / startDatetime / description
      Previous value: -"Start datetime in GDELT format YYYYMMDDHHMMSS. Must pair with endDatetime."New value: +"Start datetime in GDELT format YYYYMMDDHHMMSS — exactly 14 digits, no separators (e.g. 20200101000000). Must pair with endDatetime; supplying only one of the two is rejected."
    • addedInput schema / properties / startDatetime / pattern
      Added value: +"^\\d{14}$"
    • changedInput schema / properties / stations / description
      Previous value: -"Station IDs to filter to (e.g. [\"CNN\", \"FOXNEWS\"]). Omit for all stations. Use gdelt_list_tv_stations to see valid IDs."New value: +"Station IDs to filter to (e.g. [\"CNN\", \"FOXNEWS\"]). The GDELT TV API requires at least one station — supply it here, or embed a station: selector directly in query. Omitting both is rejected; it does not fall back to all stations. Use gdelt_list_tv_stations to see valid IDs."
  8. Changed5 schema fields changed
    • addedOutput schema / properties / effectiveQuery
      Added value: +{
      +  "description": "Echoed query string for use in follow-up calls.",
      +  "type": "string"
      +}
    • removedOutput schema / properties / query
      Removed value: -{
      -  "description": "Echoed query string.",
      -  "type": "string"
      -}
    • addedOutput schema / properties / totalCount
      Added value: +{
      +  "description": "Number of clips returned.",
      +  "type": "number"
      +}
    • removedOutput schema / properties / totalReturned
      Removed value: -{
      -  "description": "Number of clips returned.",
      -  "type": "number"
      -}
    • changedOutput schema / required
      Previous value: -[
      -  "query",
      -  "clips",
      -  "totalReturned"
      -]New value: +[
      +  "clips",
      +  "effectiveQuery",
      +  "totalCount"
      +]
  9. First observed

TDQS

A4.6/5.0
Behavior5/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations only provide readOnlyHint and openWorldHint, but the description goes far beyond them, detailing response-size limits (48,000-byte budget), continuation behavior (withheldCount), window-based clip dropping, the hard per-call ceiling of 3000, absence of a cursor, and the re-query strategy. This level of behavioral disclosure is exceptional and fully prepares the agent for real API behavior.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

The description is long, but every sentence earns its place. It opens with the core purpose, then logically flows through limits, content, usage context, window semantics, ceiling, and coverage span. It is front-loaded with the most important facts and avoids redundancy. While it could be tightened slightly, the complexity of the tool justifies the length.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness5/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

Given the tool's complexity (7 parameters, output schema, annotations), the description covers all critical operational aspects: response contents, pagination via withheldCount, the 48KB limit, the 3000 hard ceiling, window dropping, re-query guidance, station requirements, and data coverage period. It even explains the relationship to sibling tools. An agent can call this correctly without external documentation.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters4/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 100%, so the baseline is 3. The description adds value by explaining parameter interplay: maxRecords' true nature as a ceiling (not a page size), the requirement to pair startDatetime/endDatetime and rejection of one-sided input, the need for a station (either via stations or query), and the timespan precedence rule. This goes beyond simple schema field documentation.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description opens with a specific verb ('Retrieve') and a precise resource ('top matching TV news clips... from the Internet Archive's Television News Archive'). It clearly distinguishes the tool from siblings by stating it is used to read actual transcript content after gdelt_search_tv, and it lists the exact data elements returned (show, station, timestamp, transcript excerpt, link). No ambiguity remains about what the tool does.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines4/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

The description explicitly states when to use the tool: 'Use after gdelt_search_tv to read the actual transcript content driving a coverage spike.' It also provides practical handling for edge cases (cut responses, 3000 ceiling) with instructions to re-query narrower windows. It does not explicitly name alternative tools it should be contrasted with, but the workflow is clear and the limitation guidance is actionable.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

Try in Browser

Glama MCP Gateway

Add one secure layer between your agents and this server.