my002

Hi there, thanks for doing this AMA! I'm a semi-frequent poster over at /r/sex (where I'm sure you'd be very welcome to post/do an AMA if that would be of interest to you).

One of the most frequent problems and difficult problems we get there is one of mismatched libidos (e.g. one partner has a higher sex drive than the other). I've always found this a difficult issue to address, since there doesn't seem to be any good long-term solution to this problem (presuming the low libido is not due to medication or other biomedical issues), and often the advice simply becomes 'leave the relationship if sex is important to you'. I was wondering what your thoughts are about this issue and what sort of advice you give when you encounter couples with mismatched libidos?

Thanks for reading!

The NK episode of Departures always bothered me a bit. In most of the places you guys go, you do a really great job of discussing political and historical issues (for instance in Rwanda, Japan, Vietnam), but in the NK episode, there's basically no mention of any of the political issues at all and it feels like a bit of a whitewash to me. Was there a particular reason that you seemed to avoid talking politics when in came to that episode? Was it simply a time/resource/access constraint? The contemporaneous nature of the issues there? Or maybe something else entirely?

Thanks very much for the very thoughtful reply. I think the 'first long discussion' about commitment to the relationship sounds like a very good approach. You mention the issue of assuming that monogamy works for everyone. Have you had luck suggesting that some of the couples you encountered with mistmatched libidos 'open up' their relationships, then?

That sounds very interesting -- thanks very much for your replies! :)

I agree that they're not journalists, and I don't think they try to portray themselves as such, but I also think that, when you're filming a show that will be released internationally, you're no longer 'just a tourist', at least insofar as what you film/depict will influence the ways in which a pretty significant amount of people perceive the place you're filming in. That's not to say that you need to be absolutely sure that you always offer balanced coverage everywhere you go, but its worth recognizing that there are ethical implications to what you do and do not portray, which, as I mentioned before, I think Justin, Scott, Andre, and the rest of the Departures team are generally very good at doing.