Sarah Harte: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders reveal a familiar tale of how women are valued

'America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' on Netflix doesn't flinch from showing us the punishing work underpaid ‘girls’ endure, and the people-pleaser credo they are made to learn

Where one person sees empowerment in 'America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders', another will see exploitation: Sarah Harte writes of seeing a distressed cheerleader with tears in her eyes, saying: 'No matter what, we feel like it is our duty to make others happy.' Picture: Netflix

The gender pay gap raises its ugly head in boardrooms, law firms and myriad companies, but also in industries built on glamour, prestige, and passion, where women are told that the opportunity itself is part of the compensation.

That is one reason why Series 3 of America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders — currently trending in Netflix’s Top 10 — is so difficult to look away from. It is both a novel story and a familiar one about how women’s labour is valued, and perhaps how we, as women, value ourselves.