Fresh server data overrides a pinned brief; pin holds otherwise

Per the agreed model: the brief is server-authoritative and a client Replace is
a soft override that yields when genuinely new data arrives.
- build_daily_brief is now idempotent: if the composed selection is unchanged it
  leaves the brief (and its created_at) alone, so the timer's 15-min rebuilds are
  no-ops when no new data landed.
- /api/brief exposes generated_at (the brief's created_at = a content-change
  stamp). The client pins its view against generated_at and keeps it across plain
  refreshes, but drops it and shows the fresh server brief when generated_at
  advances. Missed stories remain in the mood feeds.

Tests: idempotent rebuild (no-op vs content change) — 93 total.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

frontend/src/routes/+page.svelte

@@ -76,14 +76,16 @@
     const ex = Array.from(dismissed).join(',');
     const fetched = await getJSON(`/api/brief?limit=7${q ? '&' + q : ''}${ex ? '&exclude=' + ex : ''}`);
     const view = P.loadJSON(BRIEF_VIEW_KEY, null);
-    // On a plain (re)load, keep the reader's curated view for the same day — so
+    // Keep the reader's curated view (swaps + hero) across plain refreshes — but
-    // swaps and the hero hold steady. Re-fetch fresh on a new day's brief, or
+    // only while the server's brief is unchanged. When genuinely fresh data
-    // when forced (e.g. a boundary changed and must be re-applied).
+    // arrives (generated_at advances), the server wins and the pin is dropped.
-    if (!fresh && view && view.date === fetched.brief_date && Array.isArray(view.items) && view.items.length) {
+    const sameServerBrief =
-      brief = { brief_date: view.date, title: fetched.title, items: view.items };
+      view && view.generated_at && fetched.generated_at && view.generated_at === fetched.generated_at;
+    if (!fresh && sameServerBrief && Array.isArray(view.items) && view.items.length) {
+      brief = { ...fetched, items: view.items };
     } else {
       brief = fetched;
-      P.saveJSON(BRIEF_VIEW_KEY, { date: fetched.brief_date, items: fetched.items });
+      P.saveJSON(BRIEF_VIEW_KEY, { generated_at: fetched.generated_at, items: fetched.items });
     }
     remember(brief.items);
   }
@@ -155,8 +157,9 @@
       if (i >= 0) {
         brief.items[i] = repl;
         brief = { ...brief, items: [...brief.items] };
-        // Pin the swap so this exact curated brief survives a refresh.
+        // Pin the swap against the current server brief; it holds until fresh
-        P.saveJSON(BRIEF_VIEW_KEY, { date: brief.brief_date, items: brief.items });
+        // server data arrives (then the server's version takes over).
+        P.saveJSON(BRIEF_VIEW_KEY, { generated_at: brief.generated_at, items: brief.items });
       }
     } else {
       const i = feed.findIndex((a) => a.id === article.id);

goodnews/api.py

@@ -159,6 +159,7 @@ class FeedResponse(BaseModel):
 class BriefResponse(BaseModel):
     brief_date: str | None
     title: str | None
+    generated_at: str | None = None  # freshness stamp: changes only when content changes
     items: list[Article]
 
 
@@ -336,6 +337,7 @@ def create_app() -> FastAPI:
         return BriefResponse(
             brief_date=data["brief_date"],
             title=data["title"],
+            generated_at=data.get("created_at"),
             items=[Article.from_row(r) for r in items],
         )
 

goodnews/briefs.py

@@ -14,10 +14,29 @@ def build_daily_brief(
     window_days: int = 3,
 ) -> int:
     target_date = brief_date or date.today().isoformat()
+
+    # Compose the selection first so we can tell whether anything actually
+    # changed. A calm daily brief shouldn't repeatedly hand the reader a locked
+    # door: push paywalled candidates below readable ones (stable sort) first.
+    rows = _candidate_articles(conn, target_date, window_days)
+    rows = sorted(rows, key=lambda r: is_paywalled(r["canonical_url"]))
+    selected = _select_diverse(rows, limit)
+    selected_ids = [row["id"] for row in selected]
+
     existing = conn.execute("SELECT id FROM daily_briefs WHERE brief_date = ?", (target_date,)).fetchone()
-    if existing and not replace:
+    if existing:
-        return int(existing["id"])
+        existing_ids = [
-    if existing and replace:
+            r["article_id"]
+            for r in conn.execute(
+                "SELECT article_id FROM daily_brief_items WHERE brief_id = ? ORDER BY rank",
+                (existing["id"],),
+            )
+        ]
+        # Idempotent: if the selection is unchanged, leave the brief (and its
+        # created_at freshness stamp) alone — a 15-minute rebuild with no new
+        # data is a no-op, so a reader's pinned view holds.
+        if existing_ids == selected_ids or not replace:
+            return int(existing["id"])
         conn.execute("DELETE FROM daily_briefs WHERE id = ?", (existing["id"],))
 
     brief_id = conn.execute(
@@ -25,12 +44,6 @@ def build_daily_brief(
         (target_date, f"Highlights from Today - {target_date}"),
     ).lastrowid
 
-    rows = _candidate_articles(conn, target_date, window_days)
-    # A calm daily brief shouldn't repeatedly hand the reader a locked door:
-    # push paywalled candidates below readable ones (stable, so composite order
-    # is preserved within each group) before selecting the five.
-    rows = sorted(rows, key=lambda r: is_paywalled(r["canonical_url"]))
-    selected = _select_diverse(rows, limit)
     for index, row in enumerate(selected, start=1):
         conn.execute(
             """

goodnews/queries.py

@@ -120,11 +120,11 @@ def brief(conn: sqlite3.Connection, brief_date: str | None = None, limit: int =
         return {"brief_date": None, "title": None, "items": []}
 
     header = conn.execute(
-        "SELECT brief_date, title FROM daily_briefs WHERE brief_date = ?",
+        "SELECT brief_date, title, created_at FROM daily_briefs WHERE brief_date = ?",
         (target_date,),
     ).fetchone()
     if not header:
-        return {"brief_date": target_date, "title": None, "items": []}
+        return {"brief_date": target_date, "title": None, "created_at": None, "items": []}
 
     rows = conn.execute(
         f"""
@@ -143,6 +143,7 @@ def brief(conn: sqlite3.Connection, brief_date: str | None = None, limit: int =
     return {
         "brief_date": header["brief_date"],
         "title": header["title"],
+        "created_at": header["created_at"],
         "items": [dict(row) for row in rows],
     }
 

tests/test_brief_idempotent.py

@@ -0,0 +1,45 @@
+from datetime import date
+
+from goodnews.db import connect, init_db
+from goodnews.briefs import build_daily_brief
+
+
+def _setup():
+    c = connect(":memory:"); init_db(c)
+    c.execute("INSERT INTO sources (id,name,feed_url,trust_score) VALUES (1,'S','http://s/f',5)")
+    today = date.today().isoformat()
+    for i, t in enumerate(["environment", "animals", "community", "culture", "science", "health", "environment"], 1):
+        c.execute("INSERT INTO articles (id,source_id,canonical_url,title,published_at,url_hash) VALUES (?,1,?,?,?,?)",
+                  (i, f"http://s/{i}", f"t{i}", today + "T10:00:00+00:00", f"h{i}"))
+        c.execute("INSERT INTO article_scores (article_id,constructive_score,agency_score,human_benefit_score,"
+                  "cortisol_score,ragebait_score,pr_risk_score,accepted,topic,flavor) VALUES (?,5,2,2,1,0,2,1,?,'solution')",
+                  (i, t))
+    c.commit()
+    return c, today
+
+
+def _created_at(c, day):
+    return c.execute("SELECT created_at FROM daily_briefs WHERE brief_date=?", (day,)).fetchone()[0]
+
+
+def test_rebuild_with_same_selection_is_noop():
+    c, today = _setup()
+    build_daily_brief(c, brief_date=today, limit=7, replace=True)
+    before = _created_at(c, today)
+    build_daily_brief(c, brief_date=today, limit=7, replace=True)  # nothing new
+    assert _created_at(c, today) == before  # freshness stamp preserved
+    c.close()
+
+
+def test_new_higher_ranked_article_changes_the_brief():
+    c, today = _setup()
+    build_daily_brief(c, brief_date=today, limit=7, replace=True)
+    c.execute("INSERT INTO articles (id,source_id,canonical_url,title,published_at,url_hash) VALUES (99,1,'http://s/99','t99',?,'h99')",
+              (today + "T11:00:00+00:00",))
+    c.execute("INSERT INTO article_scores (article_id,constructive_score,agency_score,human_benefit_score,"
+              "cortisol_score,ragebait_score,pr_risk_score,accepted,topic,flavor) VALUES (99,9,3,3,0,0,1,1,'animals','solution')")
+    c.commit()
+    build_daily_brief(c, brief_date=today, limit=7, replace=True)
+    ids = [r[0] for r in c.execute("SELECT article_id FROM daily_brief_items bi JOIN daily_briefs b ON b.id=bi.brief_id WHERE b.brief_date=?", (today,))]
+    assert 99 in ids
+    c.close()