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hotnews
by
zhengzhuang(郑壮)
· GitHub ↗
· v0.1.6
· MIT-0
99
Downloads
0
Stars
0
Active Installs
4
Versions
Install in OpenClaw
/install hotnews
Description
CLI tool to fetch trending news and hot topics from 8 sources across Chinese platforms and GitHub. Returns structured news items with titles, URLs, and metad...
README (SKILL.md)
hotnews CLI
Fetch trending news and hot topics from 8 sources. Returns news items with title, URL, hot metric, and rank.
Run hotnews --help for usage details.
Workflow
Follow this pattern:
- List - Don't know what sources are available? List them first.
- Fetch - Know the source? Fetch news directly.
- JSON - Need structured data? Add
--jsonfor machine-readable output.
| Need | Command | When |
|---|---|---|
| See all sources | hotnews list |
Don't know source names |
| Get news | hotnews \x3Csource> |
Know the source, want readable output |
| Get news as JSON | hotnews \x3Csource> --json |
Need structured data for processing |
| Control item count | hotnews \x3Csource> --limit N |
Want specific number of results (1-50, default 10) |
Commands
list
List all available sources.
hotnews list
Fetch a source
hotnews baidu
hotnews baidu --json
hotnews weibo --limit 5
hotnews douyin -l 15 --json
Options
| Flag | Short | Description |
|---|---|---|
--json |
Output as JSON | |
--limit N |
-l N |
Number of items to return (default: 10, max: 50) |
Output fields (JSON mode):
title- News headlineurl- Link to the articlehot- Popularity metric, e.g. "871 stars today", "5.3k" (optional)rank- Position in the ranking (1-based)
Sources
8 source endpoints:
| Platform | ID | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Baidu | baidu |
Baidu real-time search trends |
weibo |
Weibo real-time trending topics | |
| Douyin | douyin |
Douyin real-time trending |
| Hupu | hupu |
Hupu street hot posts |
| 36Kr | kr36 |
36Kr tech news flashes |
| Zhihu | zhihu |
Zhihu trending questions |
| Juejin | juejin |
Juejin developer community hot articles |
| GitHub | github |
GitHub trending open source projects today |
Source Selection Guide
| Category | Recommended Sources |
|---|---|
| General News | baidu, weibo, toutiao |
| Social/Trending | weibo, douyin, zhihu |
| Tech/Developer | juejin, github, kr36 |
| Sports/Lifestyle | hupu |
Working with Results
hotnews baidu --json | jq '.[].title'
hotnews baidu --json --limit 5
hotnews weibo --json | jq '.[] | "\(.rank). \(.title) \(.hot // "")"'
hotnews github --json | jq '.[] | "\(.title) - \(.hot)"'
Usage Guidance
This skill is instruction-only and tells you to run an npm CLI (hotnews / npx hotnews). Running npx executes code fetched from the npm registry — treat that as running arbitrary third-party code. Before installing or running it: 1) look up the npm package (name/version), homepage, and source repo and inspect the code or README; 2) prefer a pinned version (not 'latest') and check package maintainers and recent publish history; 3) run in an isolated environment (container, VM, or limited sandbox) and avoid running as root; 4) if you cannot find the package source or it lacks provenance, avoid running npx and consider alternative, well-known news tooling. The missing homepage/source and the implied remote execution are why I mark this as suspicious rather than benign.
Capability Analysis
Type: OpenClaw Skill
Name: hotnews
Version: 0.1.6
The skill bundle provides a legitimate interface for a CLI tool to fetch trending news from various Chinese platforms and GitHub. The SKILL.md file contains clear documentation, usage examples, and restricted tool definitions (Bash hotnews *) that align perfectly with the stated purpose. No evidence of prompt injection, data exfiltration, or malicious intent was found in the provided files.
Capability Assessment
Purpose & Capability
The name/description (fetch trending news from Chinese platforms and GitHub) aligns with the runtime instructions to run a CLI. The SKILL.md explicitly says 'Requires npm install', which is consistent with an npm CLI package. Minor inconsistency: the Source Selection Guide mentions 'toutiao' although the enumerated 8 sources list does not include it.
Instruction Scope
The SKILL.md instructs only to run the hotnews CLI (hotnews or npx hotnews) with flags and to consume JSON output. It does not ask the agent to read unrelated files, environment variables, or exfiltrate data to other endpoints.
Install Mechanism
There is no install spec in the registry metadata; the SKILL.md encourages using npm/npx to run the tool. npx will download and execute package code from the npm registry (or other configured registries) at runtime. Because no package homepage, source repo, version pin, or checksum is provided, this implicitly permits executing remote code of unknown provenance — a moderate-to-high risk for an otherwise simple news CLI.
Credentials
The skill declares no required environment variables, credentials, or config paths. There is no request for secrets or unrelated service credentials in the instructions.
Persistence & Privilege
always:false and no install script or config writes are declared. The skill does not request persistent presence or modify other skills or system-wide settings. Note: the platform default allows autonomous invocation, but that is not in itself a unique concern here.
How to Use
- Make sure OpenClaw is installed (local or Docker)
- Run the install command in chat:
/install hotnews - After installation, invoke the skill by name or use
/hotnews - Provide required inputs per the skill's parameter spec and get structured output
Version History
v0.1.6
- Added support for a --limit / -l option to control the number of news items returned (1-50, default 10).
- Updated documentation with new option in commands, usage examples, and option table.
- Clarified workflow for fetching a specific number of results.
v0.1.5
Version 0.1.5 of hotnews
- No file changes detected; this release maintains the same features and usage as the previous version.
- Continue fetching trending news and topics from 8 sources across Chinese platforms and GitHub.
v0.1.3
hotnews 0.1.3 changelog:
- Updated description to include international and finance/news sites in supported platforms.
- Clarified and broadened use cases for monitoring hot topics.
- Added explicit "allowed-tools" list for Bash usage.
- Updated platform description to "Chinese and international platforms".
- Minor changes to field descriptors for output and expanded metadata wording.
v0.1.4
- Improved SKILL.md documentation with detailed usage, workflow, and command examples.
- Clear descriptions and tables outlining all 8 supported news sources.
- Added source selection guide to help users pick the best platform for different news categories.
- Expanded guidance on structured JSON output and downstream processing.
- Enhanced usability instructions for both beginners and advanced users.
Metadata
Frequently Asked Questions
What is hotnews?
CLI tool to fetch trending news and hot topics from 8 sources across Chinese platforms and GitHub. Returns structured news items with titles, URLs, and metad... It is an AI Agent Skill for Claude Code / OpenClaw, with 99 downloads so far.
How do I install hotnews?
Run "/install hotnews" in the OpenClaw or Claude Code chat to install it in one step — no extra setup required.
Is hotnews free?
Yes, hotnews is completely free, licensed under MIT-0. You can download, install and use it at no cost.
Which platforms does hotnews support?
hotnews is cross-platform and runs anywhere OpenClaw / Claude Code is available (cross-platform).
Who created hotnews?
It is built and maintained by zhengzhuang(郑壮) (@zhengzhuangpro); the current version is v0.1.6.
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