fixer

Etymology

fix + -er

noun

1. Agent noun of fix: one who, or that which, fixes.
2. (photography) A chemical (sodium thiosulfate) used in photographic development that fixes the image in place, preventing further chemical reactions.
   The fixer removes the undeveloped silver salts from the film, rendering it no longer sensitive to light. Pour the fixer — at a temperature within plus or minus 5° F of the developer's — into the tank, using the amount specified by the tank directions. Agitate with ten inversions initially and then for 10 seconds out of every minute for the remainder of the fixing time. The fixing time is not as critical as the developing lime, but stay within the time range suggested in the fixer directions. 2003, Bruce Warren, Photography: The Concise Guide, Cengage Learning, page 69
3. A person who serves as an agent to arrange for a desired result, perhaps by improper means.
4. (criminal justice, law) A person who arranges immunity for defendants by tampering with the justice system via bribery or extortion, especially as a business endeavor for profit.
   A professional bank robber commented on this [a point in the thief's memoir]: 'Perhaps the author means by this that the fixer with whom he is acquainted works only on crimes not involving violence. It is true that there are specialists even in the fix line, and a man who has an in [in = advantageous position] to fix con cases might not be able to fix robbery cases. But if the author means that the fix does not exist in armed robbery, he is badly mistaken. It is merely a matter of knowing the right party to go to.' 1937, Edwin H. (ed) Sutherland, Conwell, Chic (pseudonym), The Professional Thief: by a Professional Thief. Annotated and Interpreted by Edwin H. Sutherland, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, LCCN 37036112
5. (journalism) A person who assists foreign journalists in volatile countries, often providing interpretation, personal connections, and transportation services.
   Yet at the same time, this is also the source of what journalists see as one of the major risks involved in dependence on the fixer: the fixer may determine, to some extent, what the journalist sees. It is at this point that differences between journalists become apparent in the interviews – they give different evaluations of the risks. Clearly, this is a point of tension in their understanding of the situation: the prime positive qualities of the fixer are also the potentially negative ones. 2007, Myriam Salama-Carr, Translating and Interpreting Conflict, Rodopi, page 25
6. (real estate, US) A fixer-upper.
7. (slang) A drug dealer or user.
   He'd say things like, “Now, I don’t want you in Harlem!” He was afraid I'd meet the wrong people in Harlem; fixers, junkies, people like that. 1969-10-27, Lew Alcindor, Jack Olsen, “My Story”, in Sports Illustrated, volume 31, number 18, →ISSN, page 90