Fetch NPR author profiles by canonical URL to get byline metadata, biography, and recent articles.
Get an NPR author profile. Returns an NPR author's byline metadata, biography, and recent articles from a canonical author URL.
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| url | Yes | Canonical www.npr.org author URL |
Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.
v1.17.5Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?
With no annotations, the description must carry the behavioral burden; it does convey that this is a retrieval operation and lists the returned data categories. However, it does not address edge cases such as invalid or non-canonical URLs, the number or ordering of recent articles, or response shape.
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 a single front-loaded sentence with no filler. Every phrase — author profile, byline metadata, biography, recent articles, canonical URL — contributes to either tool selection or parameter understanding.
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 one-required-parameter tool with no output schema, the description covers the essential invocation path and the broad return categories. It would benefit from a note on article limits or ordering, but an agent has enough information to call the tool correctly.
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?
Schema coverage is 100% and the only parameter is already described as a canonical www.npr.org author URL. The description repeats 'canonical author URL' without adding examples, formatting rules, or new meaning, so it stays at the baseline of 3.
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 opens with a specific verb and resource ('Get an NPR author profile') and then enumerates exactly what is returned: byline metadata, biography, and recent articles. This clearly distinguishes it from the NPR sibling tools for articles, headlines, categories, and topics.
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 no explicit when-to-use or when-not-to-use guidance and names no alternatives. It does constrain invocation to a 'canonical author URL,' which is useful, but that is more parameter guidance than tool-selection routing.
Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.