Abstract
When an individual issues a question, an answer is normatively expected. If an answer is not produced, the questioner may pursue it. However, sometimes it is not the absence of an answer that is at issue but whether that answer is deemed adequate (i.e., fitted to the action and/or topical agenda set by the question). Broadcast interactions (e.g., news interviews, political debates) are a perspicuous environment for investigating sequences in which responses to questions are provided but not always treated as answers. This article investigates how pursuits of answers are designed and what they accomplish within such contexts. Three key elements of a pursuit's design are described: namely, its recognizability as a pursuit; its fittedness to the previous response; and its sanctioning implications. The analysis sheds light on a central means by which individuals can hold others accountable for responding and by which a specific form of trouble in question-answer sequences is repaired.
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