Create Articles

Created articles are always created as a draft, and need another step to publish them (PUT request).

Create a Basic Article

This example shows how to create and publish an article using the Firstup API. This simulates how a publisher or admin might programmatically push content to the platform.

Before You Start

• You have an access token with content.write scope. See our Authorization guidance.
• You have at least one topic (channel) to publish content to.

Workflow Overview

1. Use GET /v2/channels to list your available topics (channels) and pass the channel_id.
2. Use POST /v2/content to create a draft article and link it to the topic by passing the channel_id.
3. Use PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/publish to publish your drafted article.

Endpoints

Step 1: List Available Topics

Before publishing, get the list of topics to find where your content should go.

GET /v2/channels
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

Pick a channel_id from the response to pass in the next step.

Step 2: Create a Draft Article

Submit the content as a draft:

• Creating your article as a draft is the default and only way. Publishing this requires another endpoint.
• This gives you a chance to review or edit before publishing.

POST /v2/content
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "content_type": "article",
  "title": "How to Automate Engagement Campaigns",
  "body": "<p>Engagement starts with relevance...</p>",
  "summary": "Learn how to programmatically publish content using Firstup.",
  "visibility": "private",
  "channels": [
    { "id": 123 } 
  ],
  "featured": false
}

The response contains the content_id of your draft article. Pass this into the next step.

Step 3: Publish the Article

Once you're ready, move the article from draft to published.

PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/publish
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

The article is now live and visible according to its topic targeting and visibility settings.

Attach an Image

This example shows how to create an article and attach an image to the body.

• Add up to 10 images per article.
• Images are not resized or hosted. Make sure they are production ready.
• You can update the article's body to explicitly reference or embed the image.

Before You Start

• You have an access token with content.write scope. See our Authorization guidance.
• An image URL hosted on a public CDN or trusted server.
• You have at least one topic (channel) to publish content to.

Workflow Overview

1. Use GET /v2/channels to list your available topics (channels) and pass the channel_id.
2. Use POST /v2/content to create a draft article and link it to the topic by passing the channel_id.
3. Use PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/images to add an image to your drafted article.
4. Use PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/publish to publish your drafted article.

Endpoints

Step 1: List Available Topics

Before publishing, get the list of topics to find where your content should go.

GET /v2/channels
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

Pick a channel_id from the response to pass in the next step.

Step 2: Create a Draft Article

Submit the content as a draft:

• Creating your article as a draft is the default and only way. Publishing this requires another endpoint.
• This gives you a chance to review or edit before publishing.

POST /v2/content
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "content_type": "article",
  "title": "How to Automate Engagement Campaigns",
  "body": "<p>Engagement starts with relevance...</p>",
  "summary": "Learn how to programmatically publish content using Firstup.",
  "visibility": "private",
  "channels": [
    { "id": 123 } 
  ],
  "featured": false
}

The response contains the content_id of your draft article. Pass this into the next step.

Step 3: Add an Image to the Article

Now, attach an image using the article’s content_id. The image URL must be accessible to Firstup’s servers (e.g., public S3 or CDN link).

PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/images
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "image_url": "https://cdn.example.com/images/secure-api-guide.png"
}

If successful, the image is now linked to the article and will be included in the rendered view.

Optional: Add metadata

Optionally add metadata fields. Examples:

• featured: true
• featured_label: "Editor’s Pick"

Step 4: Publish

Once you're ready, move the article from draft to published.

PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/publish
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

The article is now live and visible according to its topic targeting and visibility settings.

Attach a Video

This example shows how to create an article and attach a video to the body.

• You can add multiple videos, but only one at a time.
• Videos are not resized—optimize them for web streaming.
• Use caption and preview_image_url for accessibility and visual polish.

Before You Start

• You have an access token with content.write scope. See our Authorization guidance.
• A public video URL (e.g., MP4 or embed-safe platform).
• You have at least one topic (channel) to publish content to.

Workflow Overview

1. Use GET /v2/channels to list your available topics (channels) and pass the channel_id.
2. Use POST /v2/content to create a draft article and link it to the topic by passing the channel_id.
3. Use PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/videos to add a video to your drafted article.
4. Use PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/publish to publish your drafted article.

Endpoints

Step 1: List Available Topics

Before publishing, get the list of topics to find where your content should go.

GET /v2/channels
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

Pick a channel_id from the response to pass in the next step.

Step 2: Create a Draft Article

Submit the content as a draft:

• Creating your article as a draft is the default and only way. Publishing this requires another endpoint.
• This gives you a chance to review or edit before publishing.

POST /v2/content
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "content_type": "article",
  "title": "How to Automate Engagement Campaigns",
  "body": "<p>Engagement starts with relevance...</p>",
  "summary": "Learn how to programmatically publish content using Firstup.",
  "visibility": "private",
  "channels": [
    { "id": 123 } 
  ],
  "featured": false
}

The response contains the content_id of your draft article. Pass this into the next step.

Step 3: Add a Video to the Article

Now, attach a video using the article’s content_id.

PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/videos
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "video_url": "https://cdn.example.com/videos/ceo-interview.mp4",
  "caption": "CEO Interview: Leading in 2025",
  "preview_image_url": "https://cdn.example.com/images/ceo-video-thumbnail.jpg"
}

The response includes an embed_html snippet, which can be added to the article body if desired.

Optional: Embed

If you want control over where the video appears in the article, insert the embed_html into the body:

PUT /v2/content/{content_id}
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "body": "<p>Watch our CEO talk about leadership:</p><iframe src='...'></iframe>"
}

Step 4: Publish

Once you're ready, move the article from draft to published.

PUT /v2/content/{content_id}/publish
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

The article is now live and visible according to its topic targeting and visibility settings.