News Glossary: Key Terms Explained

Plain-English definitions of the news, policy, business, science and sports terms that appear in Amazing News Media coverage of the United States. Each entry links to a story where the term comes up. Have a term you want explained? Let us know.

Reading the news

Attribution: Telling readers where a fact, figure or quote came from, such as an agency, document or named outlet. Every claim in our reporting is attributed and linked to its source.
Byline: The line naming the writer or editor responsible for an article. Amazing News Media bylines identify the editor who compiled and checked the story.
Correction: A published fix for a factual error, noted on the article with what changed and when. See our corrections policy for how to report one.
Dateline: The date, and sometimes the place, a story was filed. It tells readers how current the information is.
Dek: The short summary line under a headline that tells readers what the story adds. Also called a subhead or standfirst.
Embargo: An agreement under which a source shares news with reporters in advance on condition that it is not published before a set time. Scientific journals often embargo new studies.
Opinion: Writing that argues a point of view, labeled separately from news reporting. Op-eds are opinion pieces by writers outside the newsroom.
Pen name: A name a writer publishes under instead of a legal name. Our editor byline is a disclosed editorial pen name.
Press release: An official statement written and distributed by an organization to announce news. Press releases are labeled as such and are not independent reporting.
Primary source: Original material such as a court filing, government dataset, official statement or study, as opposed to another outlet's account of it. Related coverage: Declassified CIA Briefs Trace Years of Bin Laden Warnings Before 9/11
Sponsored content: Material paid for by an advertiser and published with a clear label. It is kept separate from editorial reporting.

Government and law

Associate attorney general: The third-ranking official at the U.S. Department of Justice, who oversees civil litigation, antitrust and other divisions. Related coverage: TikTok to Pay $400 Million to End Justice Department Child Privacy Suit
Civil penalty: A fine the government seeks in a civil, not criminal, case for violating a law or regulation, such as a federal privacy rule. Related coverage: TikTok to Pay $400 Million to End Justice Department Child Privacy Suit
Consent decree: A settlement approved and enforced by a court, in which a party agrees to take or stop certain actions without admitting wrongdoing. Related coverage: TikTok to Pay $400 Million to End Justice Department Child Privacy Suit
COPPA: The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, a 1998 federal law that requires parental consent before websites and apps collect personal information from children under 13. Related coverage: TikTok to Pay $400 Million to End Justice Department Child Privacy Suit
Declassification: The formal removal of a secrecy classification so a government document can be released to the public, sometimes with redactions. Related coverage: Declassified CIA Briefs Trace Years of Bin Laden Warnings Before 9/11
National Guard: The reserve military force of each U.S. state, which a governor can mobilize for disasters such as wildfires and floods. Related coverage: Hawk Fire Burns Homes in Northwest Reno as Tens of Thousands Flee
President's Daily Brief: The top-secret summary of intelligence prepared each day for the president and a few senior officials. Related coverage: Declassified CIA Briefs Trace Years of Bin Laden Warnings Before 9/11
State of emergency: A declaration by a governor or other official that unlocks emergency powers, funding and resources, such as calling up the National Guard. Related coverage: Hawk Fire Burns Homes in Northwest Reno as Tens of Thousands Flee

Disasters and safety

Containment: The share of a wildfire's perimeter that crews have surrounded with control lines, reported as a percentage. Full containment does not mean the fire is out. Related coverage: Hawk Fire Burns Homes in Northwest Reno as Tens of Thousands Flee
Evacuation order: An official instruction to leave an area immediately because of an imminent threat. An evacuation warning means be ready to go. Related coverage: Hawk Fire Burns Homes in Northwest Reno as Tens of Thousands Flee
Flash flood: A rapid rise of water, usually within six hours of heavy rain or a dam failure, that can sweep through dry washes and canyons with little warning. Related coverage: Search Goes On for Missing Hiker After Deadly Grand Canyon Flash Flood
Magnitude (earthquake): A measure of the energy an earthquake releases, reported by the U.S. Geological Survey on the moment magnitude scale. Each whole number is about 32 times more energy.
Preliminary report: The first factual account of an accident released by the National Transportation Safety Board, usually within about 30 days. It does not state a cause. Related coverage: Two Contract Pilots Die as Firefighting Helicopter Goes Down Over Yosemite's Dome Fire
Wildland fire: Any fire burning in forests, grasslands or other natural vegetation, as opposed to a structure fire. Related coverage: Two Contract Pilots Die as Firefighting Helicopter Goes Down Over Yosemite's Dome Fire

Health policy

Medicare Advantage: Private health plans, also called Medicare Part C, that provide Medicare benefits under contract with the federal government.
Medicare Part D: The optional Medicare prescription drug benefit, offered through private stand-alone plans or built into Medicare Advantage plans.
Open enrollment: The yearly window, October 15 to December 7, when people with Medicare can change health and drug plans for the next year.
Special enrollment period: Extra time to change coverage outside open enrollment, granted after events such as a plan leaving your area.

Economy and markets

Budget deficit: The amount by which federal spending exceeds revenue in a fiscal year. Deficits are financed by borrowing, which adds to the national debt. Related coverage: U.S. National Debt Crosses $40 Trillion as Borrowing Costs Climb
Debt held by the public: Federal debt owned by investors outside the federal government, including individuals, companies, the Federal Reserve and foreign governments. Related coverage: U.S. National Debt Crosses $40 Trillion as Borrowing Costs Climb
Fiscal year: The federal government's budget year, which runs from October 1 to September 30. Related coverage: U.S. National Debt Crosses $40 Trillion as Borrowing Costs Climb
Intragovernmental holdings: Federal debt the government owes to its own accounts, mainly trust funds such as Social Security. Related coverage: U.S. National Debt Crosses $40 Trillion as Borrowing Costs Climb
National debt: The total amount the U.S. government has borrowed and not repaid. It passed $40 trillion in August 2026. Related coverage: U.S. National Debt Crosses $40 Trillion as Borrowing Costs Climb
Retaliatory tariff: A tariff one country imposes in response to another country's tariffs or trade actions.
Tariff: A tax on imported goods, paid to U.S. Customs and Border Protection by the importer when goods enter the country.
Trade deficit: The amount by which a country's imports of goods and services exceed its exports over a period.
Treasury buyback: A Treasury Department operation that repurchases older government securities before they mature, often to support market liquidity. Related coverage: U.S. National Debt Crosses $40 Trillion as Borrowing Costs Climb
Treasury yield: The annual return investors earn on U.S. government debt. Rising yields raise federal borrowing costs and tend to push up mortgage rates. Related coverage: U.S. National Debt Crosses $40 Trillion as Borrowing Costs Climb

Business and technology

AI agent: An AI system that can carry out multi-step tasks on its own, such as operating a computer, browsing the web or running software, rather than only answering questions. Related coverage: OpenAI Starts Phased Release of GPT-6 Astra Under Tighter Security Rules
API: An application programming interface, the channel through which developers connect their own software to a service such as an AI model. Related coverage: OpenAI Starts Phased Release of GPT-6 Astra Under Tighter Security Rules
Equity stake: A share of ownership in a company, usually held as stock. Related coverage: Anthropic Pledges 5% of Its Equity to a New Fund for the Public Good Ahead of Planned IPO
Initial public offering: A private company's first sale of stock to the public, after which its shares trade on an exchange. Related coverage: Anthropic Pledges 5% of Its Equity to a New Fund for the Public Good Ahead of Planned IPO
Large language model: An AI model trained on vast amounts of text to predict and generate language. OpenAI's GPT models and Anthropic's Claude models are examples. Related coverage: OpenAI Starts Phased Release of GPT-6 Astra Under Tighter Security Rules
Preparedness Framework: OpenAI's internal policy for measuring risky capabilities in its AI models and deciding when stricter safeguards apply. Related coverage: OpenAI Starts Phased Release of GPT-6 Astra Under Tighter Security Rules
Public benefit corporation: A for-profit company whose charter names a public benefit that directors must balance against shareholders' financial interests. Related coverage: Anthropic Pledges 5% of Its Equity to a New Fund for the Public Good Ahead of Planned IPO

Science and space

Coronagraph: An instrument that blocks the glare of a star so a telescope can see faint planets or dust close to it. Related coverage: NASA's Roman Space Telescope Lifts Off to Map Dark Energy and Distant Worlds
Dark energy: The unknown cause of the universe's accelerating expansion, estimated to make up about 68 percent of its total energy content. Related coverage: NASA's Roman Space Telescope Lifts Off to Map Dark Energy and Distant Worlds
Dark matter: Invisible matter detected only through its gravity, estimated to outweigh ordinary matter by roughly five to one. Related coverage: NASA's Roman Space Telescope Lifts Off to Map Dark Energy and Distant Worlds
Infrared: Light with wavelengths longer than visible red light. Infrared telescopes can see through dust and detect very distant galaxies. Related coverage: NASA's Roman Space Telescope Lifts Off to Map Dark Energy and Distant Worlds
Lagrange point: A spot in space where the gravity of two large bodies, such as the Sun and Earth, lets a spacecraft hold position with little fuel. L2 lies about a million miles from Earth. Related coverage: NASA's Roman Space Telescope Lifts Off to Map Dark Energy and Distant Worlds
Neutrino: A nearly massless subatomic particle with no electric charge that rarely interacts with matter, so trillions pass through each person every second. Related coverage: Physics Nobel Goes to Francis Halzen, Who Turned Antarctic Ice Into a Neutrino Telescope
Nobel Prize: Annual international awards for physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, peace and economics, first presented in 1901. Related coverage: Physics Nobel Goes to Francis Halzen, Who Turned Antarctic Ice Into a Neutrino Telescope

Sports and entertainment

Aid station: A checkpoint along an ultramarathon course where runners get food, water, medical help and rest. Related coverage: Moab 240 Called Off After Rachel's Remnants Trap About 70 Runners and Volunteers in Utah Backcountry
Creative Arts Emmys: The Primetime Emmy ceremonies honoring craft and technical work, such as casting, cinematography, music and sound, plus guest acting. Related coverage: 'Widow's Bay' Rewrites the Emmy Comedy Record With 14 Wins
EGOT: Winning all four major U.S. entertainment awards: the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony.
Primetime Emmy Awards: The Television Academy's yearly awards for evening television, including comedy and drama series. Related coverage: 'Widow's Bay' Rewrites the Emmy Comedy Record With 14 Wins
Rookie: A player in his first full major league season. MLB defines rookie status by limits on at-bats, innings pitched and days on the active roster.
Ultramarathon: Any footrace longer than the 26.2-mile marathon, from 50-kilometer races to multiday events of 200 miles or more. Related coverage: Moab 240 Called Off After Rachel's Remnants Trap About 70 Runners and Volunteers in Utah Backcountry
World Series: Major League Baseball's best-of-seven championship between the American League and National League pennant winners, first played in 1903.

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