In the HTML head, this page has JSON-LD code that lists the 10 most recent articles
https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/keyword/mergers-and-acquisitions
Can I use distill to monitor that JSON-LD code?
I can’s use a JSON monitor because the link is HTML, not JSON.
I created a Webpage monitor using XPath to select only the JSON-LD content (//script[@type=“application/ld+json”]), but distill treats it as text, not JSON.
@danielems Yes, you can monitor JSON-LD with Distill — but it will be treated as text, and that’s expected behavior.
Why this happens
JSON-LD is structured metadata embedded inside an HTML page, usually in a <script type="application/ld+json">tag.
Even though it looks like JSON, the page itself is still HTML, not a JSON endpoint.
JSON monitors only work with URLs that return raw JSON, so they can’t be used here.
What Distill does
A Webpage monitor is the correct choice.
Using XPath like
//script[@type="application/ld+json"]
correctly selects the JSON-LD block.
Distill treats this content as text, not parsed JSON — this is expected and correct.
Is this still useful?
Yes. JSON-LD typically changes only when the underlying content changes (e.g., new articles).
Monitoring it as text is often stable and reliable for detecting updates like newly published items.
Summary
JSON-LD ≠ JSON API
Webpage monitor is the right approach
Text-based monitoring is expected behavior
This setup works well for tracking content changes