Topic: Cheerleading

A clip from a show about Dallas Cowboys cheerleader candidates shows a young woman admitting she gets her news exclusively from Instagram. The coach advises her to consume more news for her own sake. This is used to segue back into a promotion for the "Smart News" app as a solution for poor media literacy.

A New Jersey high school is facing backlash after implementing a "more inclusive" cheerleading policy that allows all interested students to join the squad regardless of tryout performance. Parents and students who "worked hard" to earn their spots are protesting the change. The school administration reportedly threatened to disband the program entirely if the complaints continued.

The New York Times reported on a 2013 trip to Costa Rica where Washington NFL cheerleaders were allegedly required to pose topless for sponsors and act as escorts. Many of the women were hesitant to speak out due to confidentiality agreements. The story highlights ongoing issues of harassment and poor treatment of professional cheerleaders in the NFL.

The hosts track the rise of "abbrevies" in marketing, such as "Derm Reco" (Dermatologist Recommended) on Head & Shoulders bottles. They also discuss a civil rights complaint filed by a former New Orleans Saints cheerleader alleging gender discrimination. The complaint claims the team enforces strict social media and fraternization rules for female cheerleaders that do not apply to male players.

The lack of commercial breaks in soccer is cited as the primary reason for its struggle in the American market. Comparisons are made to NASCAR's "competition yellows," with suggestions that soccer could be modified with mascots, cheerleaders, or mid-play commercials to better suit US television formats.

The website ScienceCheerleader.com features professional cheerleaders who are also scientists and engineers, including employees from NASA and the NIH. The hosts speculate that this "babe fest" is a sophisticated public relations campaign designed to improve the image of science following various scandals. They predict these women will eventually be used as spokespeople to promote influenza vaccinations to a skeptical public.