VILLANOVA UNIVERSITY NEWS

Associated Press
This Year's Super Bowl Commercials Feature AI, Weight-Loss Drugs and Celebrities Galore

February 6, 2026 - Villanova University marketing professor Charles Taylor said because of the heavy headlines in the news lately, he expects advertisers to stick to a light and silly tone. “Because of the Super Bowl’s status as a pop culture event with a fun party atmosphere, the vast majority of brands will avoid any dark or divisive tone and instead allow consumers to escape from thinking about these troubled times,” he said.

The Conversation
Philly Theaters Unite to Stage 3 Plays by Pulitzer-Winning Playwright James Ijames

February 4, 2026 - "I’m a theater theorist, historian and practitioner who has written about Ijames’ work before and after his 2022 Pulitzer Prize. I believe this landmark collaboration between three important Philadelphia theaters is a fitting celebration of a multi-hyphenate theater artist who continues to champion his longtime artistic home." Bess Rowen is an assistant professor of Theatre at Villanova University.

Forbes
Sabrina Carpenter Super Bowl Ad for Pringles Targets Gen-Z With Humor

February 3, 2026 - "For its ninth consecutive Super Bowl appearance, Pringles continues to demonstrate how disciplined brand storytelling—when paired with cultural fluency—can elevate a snack ad into a broader platform moment. This year’s spot, “Pringleleo,” starring pop artist Sabrina Carpenter, is more than a celebrity cameo. Instead, it functions as a carefully engineered expression of Pringles’ long-term brand strategy, one rooted in humor, nostalgia, and Gen Z relevance." Charles R. "Ray" Taylor is the John A. Murphy Professor of Marketing at the Villanova School of Business.

Forbes
Seven Ways AI Would Have Stopped First Brands' $2.7 Billion Fraud

February 2, 2026 - "Intentional complication often signals, shrouds and eventually sinks skullduggery. First Brands, the after-market auto parts distribution conglomerate, epitomizes such design, deployment and demise." Noah Barsky is a professor in executive and graduate business programs at the Villanova University School of Business.

The New York Times
Trump's Lawsuit Against I.R.S. Creates "Enormous Conflict of Interest"

January 30, 2026 - Under federal law, people have two years to sue the government after they discover that their tax returns have been improperly disclosed... "There was quite a bit of litigation and press coverage concerning the nature of the disclosure that Littlejohn engaged in," said Leslie Book, a law professor at Villanova. "To argue, as Trump is arguing in the suit, that he wasn't aware of this, that he didn't discover it until the I.R.S. sent that letter, frankly, I find hard to support."

USA Today
Weight-Loss Drugs Draw Thousands of Lawsuits Alleging Serious Harm

January 28, 2026 - Suits target Novo Nordisk, the Danish manufacturer of Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus, Victoza and Saxenda, and Indiana-based Eli Lilly, which makes Trulicity, Mounjaro and Zepbound... Ana Santos Rutschman, a health law professor at Villanova University, said proving the drugs caused certain outcomes will be an issue as the legal battle unfolds, along with the extent and timing of warnings.