ECHO - In radio, the repetition of sound usually achieved by using a reel-to-reel tape recorder.

ECU - Editing control unit. In television, a piece of electronic equipment used to control the playback and edit/record videocassette recorders during videotape editing.

EDITING CELL - An area of a television studio devoted to videotape editing. Most editing cells in NBS detachments include a playback videocassette recorder (VCR), edit/record VCR, two television monitors, audio mixer and an editing control unit (ECU).

EDITORIALIZING - A violation in newswriting that occurs when the writer consciously or unconsciously expresses doubt, censure or praise in a news story or headline.

ELECTRONIC FLASH - In still photography, a highvoltage light source for illumination, producing a momentary flash of light of high intensity.

ENG - Electronic News Gathering. In television, the use of a portable video camera and portable videocassette recorder to cover news.

ENLARGER - In still photography, a photographic projection printer.

EQUALIZER - In radio and television, a piece of equipment that alters the frequency response of an audio signal, allowing modification of specific portions of the overall signal. Equalization does not eliminate frequencies totally, but it will vary their playback levels.

ESSENTIAL AREA - In television, the portion of a visual that must include all the important information to ensure its reception by the viewer.

EXPOSURE - In still photography, a predetermined combination of shutter speed and lens aperture that allows light to pass through the lens and strike the film.

EXTREME CLOSE-UP (ECU) - In television and still photography, a shot where the talent or subject practically fills the screen or frame.

EXTREME LONG SHOT (ELS) - In television and still photography, a shot that produces a very wide field of view.

FADE - In radio and television, the gradual decrease or increase of the audio or video signal.

FEATURE NEWS - News that centers on an event or situation that stirs the emotions or imagination of an individual.

FEATURE STORY - A story that not only entertains, but is informative because it contains all the elements of a news story.

FHTNC - Fleet Home Town News Center. Administers the Fleet Home Town News Program.

FILE, ALIBI - A public affairs office file that contains query sheets and copies of news advisories released to the news media. Although a separate file, the news release file is also called an alibi file.

FILE, CLIP - A public affairs office file that contains clippings of stories that have been released and have appeared in print.

FILE, COMMAND - A public affairs office file that contains reference material pertaining to the command, such as the command history and biographies of the CO, XO and C/MC.

FILE, COMMUNITY RELATIONS - A public affairs office file that contains the names, addresses and telephone numbers of civic leaders and community groups with which the command maintains contact.

FILE, CORRESPONDENCE AND MEMOS - A "public affairs office file that contains all outgoing and incoming official correspondence and memos.

FILE, FLEET HOME TOWN NEWS - A public affairs office file that contains a 90-day logbook or index file of each release form mailed to the Fleet Home Town News Center (FHTNC). For deployed units, this file contains copies of every release form that is part of a hold file.

FILE, FUTURE - A public affairs office file that contains a current listing of all events that have been scheduled or planned for the future.

FILE, MATTERS PENDING - A public affairs office file that maintains notes and reminders on pending ideas that may be useful for news releases, feature stories, news pegs for special events and other public affairs activities.

FILE, MEDIA RELATIONS - A public affairs office file that contains a listing of all media in the local area and any pertinent amplifying information.

FILE, NEWS RELEASE - A public affairs office file that contains the original news releases distributed to the media. The news release file is also called an alibi file.

FILE, PHOTOGRAPHIC - A public affairs office file that contains photographs of the ship underway or points of interest within a shore command. The photographic file also contains photographs to accompany biographies of the CO, XO and C/MC.

FILE, PROJECT - A public affairs office file that contains past, present and future public affairs projects involving the command.

FILE, SPEECH - A public affairs office file that contains copies of all prepared speeches and other presentations delivered by members of the command in connection with the speakers bureau. It also contains background materail for future speeches.

FILM - A light-sensitive emulsion of silver halides suspended in gelatin and coated on a transparent and chemically neutral base, usually cellulose or polymer plastic.

FILM SPEED - See ISO.

FILTER - (1) In photography, a layer of colored glass, gelatin or other material used to alter the characteristics of light before it reaches the film. (2) In radio and television, an electronic circuit designed to pass only selected audio frequencies while eliminating all others.

FILTER, COLOR COMPENSATING - A filter used to change the overall color balance of photographic results obtained with color film and to compensate for deficiencies in the quality of the light when printing color films.

FILTERS, KODAK WRATTEN - A line of filters used in black-and-white photography.

FIVE Ws, THE - The who, what, when, where, why (and sometimes how) that a journalist attempts to answer in writing a summary lead.

FIXER - A solution used to remove undeveloped silver halides from photosensitized emulsions. The fixer usually contains sodium or ammonium thiosulfate, a hardening agent, and an acid or acid salt.

FLAG - A newspaper device used to indicate section pages or special pages, such as editorial, sports and family pages.

FLASH - See ELECTRONIC FLASH.

FLOOR MANAGER - In television, a member of the studio production team who is in charge of all activities on the studio floor. The floor manager's main responsibility is to communicate instructions from the director to the talent using hand signals.

FLOPPY DISK DRIVE - A secondary storage device that uses a removable magnetic disk (floppy disk).

FLUSH - To place copy even with the column margin on either the left or right. Usually designated "flush left" or "flush right."

FOCAL LENGTH - The distance from the optical center of the lens to the focal plane (film plane) when the camera is focused upon an object at infinity.

FOCAL PLANE - The surface (plane) on which an axial image transmitted by a lens is brought to sharpest focus.

FOCAL POINT - A point on a newspaper page where the reader normally looks for the most important story.

FOCUS - To adjust the position of either the lens or focusing screen in a camera or projector to secure the sharpest possible image of the object.

FOLIO LINE - A newspaper's identification line on each page.

FOLLOW-UP STORY - A story written to update the developments of a previous story.

FOOTCANDLE - A basic measurement used to gauge the intensity of light.

FORMAL BALANCE DESIGN - A traditional front-page newspaper design pattern in which the page is divided in half vertically and each element on one side of the vertical centerline is duplicated by the same treatment of elements at the same point on the opposite side.

FOUR-UNIT HEADING - In radio and television, the portion of the broadcast scrip/release that contains the slugline, date, copy length and release line. It is located below the administrative information.

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT, THE - A law established to give the public the right to access records of the executive branch of the federal government.

FRONT LIGHTING - In still photography, the type of lighting effect created when the sun is in back of the photographer.

f/STOP - A numbered diaphragm opening through which light enters the camera; f/stops are usually calibrated to change the amount of light by a factor of two times with each succeeding number.

GAIN - The level of amplification for video or audio signals.

GAIN CONTROL - See POT.

GALLEY PROOF - The initial copy of a typeset story used for proofreading and annotating typesetter errors.

GRADUATE - A container for liquids marked off to measure various volumes.

GROUND GLASS - A sheet of glass with a grained or matte (translucent) surface, such as a focusing screen or a diffusing screen.