Fetch site-wide Foreign Affairs headlines from its public RSS feed without needing article pages or account access.
Get Foreign Affairs site-wide headlines. Returns fresh Foreign Affairs headlines from the site's public, site-wide RSS feed. Article pages and account state are not required.
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
No arguments | |||
Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.
v1.17.5Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?
No annotations are provided, so the description carries the behavioral disclosure burden. It usefully states the feed is public, site-wide, RSS-based, and that no article page or account state is needed. It does not describe the exact output shape or any feed limits, but for a zero-parameter headlines tool the disclosed source and auth-free nature are sufficient behavioral context.
Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.
Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?
The description is compact and front-loaded: the first sentence states the purpose, and the second adds the useful source and non-requirement details. Every sentence earns its place with no filler or repetition.
Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.
Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?
For a simple zero-parameter RSS headline fetcher, the description is largely complete: it names the resource, source, freshness, and explicitly rules out the need for article pages or authentication. It could have briefly stated what the returned headlines look like or mentioned limits, but this is a minor gap given the tool's simplicity.
Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.
Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?
The input schema has zero parameters and 100% description coverage, so there are no parameter semantics for the description to clarify. The baseline for zero-parameter tools is 4, and the description does not need to add parameter-level meaning.
Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.
Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?
The description states a specific verb-resource pair ('Get Foreign Affairs site-wide headlines') and adds the source ('public, site-wide RSS feed'). It clearly differentiates from sibling tools like foreignaffairs_article, foreignaffairs_author, and foreignaffairs_topics by signaling this is the site-wide headline feed, not content for a specific article, author, or topic.
Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.
Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?
The description gives clear context for use: it is the site-wide headlines feed, and it explicitly notes that article pages and account state are not required. This implies the tool is for headline retrieval rather than article content or personalized data, though it does not explicitly name alternative sibling tools as a direct when-not-to-use instruction.
Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.