> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.beyondwords.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Content items

In BeyondWords, each piece of content is stored as a **content item**. Content items can be created through [integrations](/docs-and-guides/integrations/integrations-overview), [URL imports](/docs-and-guides/tools/import-from-url), or the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor).

Each content item includes an **article** (the main piece of text used to generate audio/video) and can optionally include a **script** (an alternate version of the article created specifically for audio/video). Scripts can be [generated automatically](/docs-and-guides/tools/generate-scripts) or added manually in the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor).

Each content item can generate up to four outputs:

* **Audio article (required)**: Audio version of your article
* **Audio summary (optional)**: Audio version of your script
* **Video article (optional)**: Video version of your article
* **Video summary (optional)**: Video version of your script

<Warning>
  The audio generated for your audio article is also used in your video article. Likewise, the audio generated for your audio summary is used in your video summary. This means any changes to the audio will affect both formats.
</Warning>

## View content items

You can view your BeyondWords content in the **Content → Items** section of your [project dashboard](/docs-and-guides/get-started/projects). The table shows the following information:

* **Status**: Hover on the icon to view the status of your audio/video:
  * **Generated (play button)**: Audio/video has successfully generated
  * **Queued**: Waiting to begin generation
  * **Generating**: Currently being generated
  * **Draft**: Generation has not yet been requested
  * **Skipped**: Generation was skipped, usually because there were not enough credits
* **Error**: Generation failed—please try [regenerating](#regenerate-content) the content item
* **Title**: The content's meta title ([learn more below](#view-content-metadata))
* **Duration**: The duration of your audio article
* **Published date**: The publish date set on the content item, which may not be equivalent to the creation date

<Info>
  It typically takes less than a couple of minutes for audio/video to be processed.
</Info>

## View content metadata

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Content ID">
    To copy a content ID:

    1. Go to **Content → Items** in your project dashboard
    2. Click **•••** alongside the relevant content item
    3. Click **Copy ID**

    You can also view the content ID in the **Info** section of the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Source ID">
    To copy a source ID:

    1. Go to **Content → Items** in your project dashboard
    2. Click **•••** alongside the relevant content item
    3. Click **Copy source ID**

    You can also view the source ID in the **Info** section of the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Source URL">
    To view or copy a source URL:

    1. Open the relevant content item in the Editor
    2. Go to the **Info** tab in the left-hand sidebar
    3. View or copy the **Source URL** field
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Meta title">
    The meta title is the content title displayed across BeyondWords distributions, including the [player](/docs-and-guides/distribution/player/player-introduction) and [podcast feeds](/docs-and-guides/distribution/podcast-feeds). It's not necessarily the same as the title spoken in the audio.

    The meta title is set when the first segment of your article is created. If this first segment is later changed, the meta title does not automatically synchronize with the updated text.

    To update the meta title:

    1. Open the relevant content item in the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor)
    2. Go to the **Info** tab in the left-hand sidebar
    3. Edit the **Meta title** field
    4. Click **Regenerate** to save your changes
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Publish date">
    The publish date is when content was or will be made available through distributions, assuming privacy is set to public.

    To view or edit the publish date: 

    1. Open the relevant content item in the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor)
    2. Go to the **Info** tab in the left-hand sidebar
    3. View or edit the **Publish date** field
    4. Click **Regenerate** to save any changes
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Creation date">
    To view a content item's creation date:

    1. Open the relevant content item in the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor)
    2. Go to the **Info** tab in the left-hand sidebar
    3. Refer to the **Creation date** field
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Author">
    Author metadata can be used to create author-based [playlists](/docs-and-guides/distribution/playlists) and [podcast feeds](/docs-and-guides/distribution/podcast-feeds). To view or edit the author field:

    1. Open the relevant content item in the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor)
    2. Go to the **Info** tab in the left-hand sidebar
    3. View or edit the **Author** field
    4. Click **Regenerate** to save any changes
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Properties (custom metadata)">
    Define custom metadata as JSON objects to create smart [playlists](/docs-and-guides/distribution/playlists) and [podcast feeds](/docs-and-guides/distribution/podcast-feeds) based on your chosen criteria.

    1. Open the relevant content item in the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor)
    2. Go to the **Info** tab in the left-hand sidebar
    3. Switch on the **Properties: Advanced** toggle
    4. Click **Add property** and enter your property in JSON format
    5. Click **Regenerate** to save any changes

    Example property:

    ```json theme={null}
    {
      "category": "sport",
      "region": "uk"
    }
    ```
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Preview content

Once generated, you can preview generated audio/video in the **Content → Items** section of your [project dashboard](/docs-and-guides/get-started/projects).

* Click the **Play** button to hear the audio article
* Click the **View summary** icon to view the audio summary in the **Share** dialog. (From there, you can also preview the audio article, video article, and video summary.)
* Click the **View video** icon to view the video article in the **Share** dialog. (From there, you can also preview the video summary, audio article, and audio summary.)

For a more controlled preview, we recommend using [shareable URLs](/docs-and-guides/distribution/share-via-url). However, these won't work if the content's visibility is set to private or the publish date is in the future.

## Edit content

To edit content, go to the the **Content → Items** section of your [project dashboard](/docs-and-guides/get-started/projects) and select the relevant item to open the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor). The Editor allows you to edit article and script text, customize audio and video settings, update metadata, and regenerate audio and video.

If you [integrate with BeyondWords](/docs-and-guides/integrations/integrations-overview), edits to your live articles are synced automatically by default. This ensures your audio and video articles stay up to date with the source content.

## Regenerate content

Regeneration reprocesses your audio and video using the content item's current settings. This is useful when:

* You have updated your content extraction or generation settings
* There was an error with content extraction or generation

Regeneration can happen [automatically](#automatic-regeneration) or be triggered [manually](#manual-regeneration).

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="If I regenerate an article, am I charged credits for the whole thing?">
    If you regenerate an article, you're only charged [credits](/docs-and-guides/admin/credits-and-billing) for the segment or segments that need to be regenerated. For example, if you correct a typo, you will only be charged for regenerating the paragraph containing that typo.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="New settings aren't being applied when I regenerate content">
    If your new settings are not being applied after regeneration, it's likely because the content item is using settings that were intentionally preserved from when it was first created.

    For example, if you change your project's default voice and then regenerate existing content items, those items will  continue to use their original voices.

    To update these kinds of settings, you  need to update the content item directly in the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor) or through the [API](/docs-and-guides/integrations/api-overview) before regenerating.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Regenerated content isn't appearing in distributions">
    After regenerating content, it can take up to 5 minutes for updates to appear in the [player](/docs-and-guides/distribution/player/player-introduction) due to caching. Changes may take longer to propagate to [podcast feeds](/docs-and-guides/distribution/podcast-feeds), depending on how frequently podcast apps refresh feed content.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

### Automatic regeneration

If you [integrate with BeyondWords](/docs-and-guides/integrations/integrations-overview), we periodically check your source articles for updates. When updates are detected, the audio/video article are regenerated automatically to keep them in sync with the source content.

If automatic regeneration is enabled for an article, changes that you make in the Editor may be inadvertently overwritten when you make changes to the live article. To prevent this from happening: 

1. Open the content item in the [Editor](/docs-and-guides/tools/editor)
2. Go to the **Info** tab
3. Disable the **API updates** toggle
4. **Regenerate** your content like normal

### Manual regeneration

To manually regenerate content:

1. Go to the **Content → Items** section of your project dashboard
2. Click ••• **→ Regenerate** alongside the content item you want to regenerate
3. Click **Regenerate** to confirm

## Change content visibility

Content visibility is **Public** by default. If you don't want audio and/or video to be available through distributions such as [shareable URLs](/docs-and-guides/distribution/share-via-url), [podcast feeds](/docs-and-guides/distribution/podcast-feeds), or [embedded players](/docs-and-guides/distribution/player/player-introduction), you can change its visibility to **Private**.

To change content's visibility:

1. Go to **Content → Items** in your project dashboard
2. Click **••• → Set visibility** next to the relevant content item
3. Use the toggles to control whether audio and/or video is publicly available
4. Click **Save changes**

To change content's visibility in bulk:

1. Go to **Content → Items** in your project dashboard
2. Check boxes alongside the relevant content items
3. Click **Actions → Set visibility**
4. Use the toggles to control whether audio and/or video is publicly available
5. Click **Save changes**

## Delete content

To delete a content item:

1. Go to the **Content → Items** section of your project dashboard
2. Click ••• **→ Delete** alongside the content item you want to delete
3. Click **Delete** to confirm

To delete content in bulk:

1. Go to **Content → Items** in your project dashboard
2. Check boxes alongside the items you want to delete
3. Click **Actions → Delete**
4. Click **Delete all** to confirm

<Danger>
  This action permanently deletes the content item, including the article, script, and any generated audio or video. Deleted content cannot be recovered and must be recreated if needed again.
</Danger>