RT Journal Article SR Electronic(1) A1 Haugh, Michael A1 Sinkeviciute, Valeria YR 2018 T1 Accusations and interpersonal conflict in televised multi-party interactions amongst speakers of (Argentinian and Peninsular) Spanish JF Journal of Language Aggression and Conflict VO 6 IS 2 SP 248 OP 270 DO https://doi.org/10.1075/jlac.00012.hau PB John Benjamins SN 2213-1272, AB Abstract While there is a growing body of research on impoliteness and conflict talk, the role of accusations in interpersonal conflict has been only addressed in passing. In this paper, we focus on accusations in conflict talk amongst interactants who are in a situation demanding the formation of intimate relationships within a relatively short span of time, namely, the television reality show Big Brother. We examine, in particular, accusation sequences arising in multi-party interactions from the Argentinian and Spanish versions of the show. We analyse the ways in which assertions of fault or wrongdoing are construed as accusations through such responses as denials, counter-accusations and challenges, and the ways in which participants explicitly evaluate each other’s behaviour through such sequences. We conclude that accusations are designed primarily to enact moral denunciation or condemnation of another party, and so almost invariably occasion interpersonal disputes., UL https://www.jbe-platform.com/content/journals/10.1075/jlac.00012.hau