Not all topics are politically contentious; not all cultural and linguistic barriers to communication are obstructively high; not all time maps are out of sync. Fixers’ jobs are easiest when reporters and sources already agree about what information to exchange and how, when, and why to exchange it. Matchmaking compatible reporter–source pairings is an important part of fixers’ jobs as catalysts, and fixers learn to expand their social networks to maximize pairing options. But perfect matchmaking is not always possible. Conflicts between journalists and locals arise, and fixers are caught in the middle. Expectations pull on them from both sides. The fact that additional parties – police, militants, spies, nosy neighbors – also surveil and pressure fixers adds to the complexity of their moral worlds.