SyndFeed feed = null;
SyndFeedInput input = new SyndFeedInput();
String feedURL = extFeed.getExternalFeedUrl();
try {
URL url = new URL(feedURL);
feed = input.build(new XmlReader(url));
// also add the external image url just in case we'll need it later
addExternalImageURL(feed, extFeed);
} catch (MalformedURLException e) {
log.error("The externalFeedUrl is invalid: " + feedURL);
} catch (FeedException e) {