Loved that line. That was one of the first things that really made me appreciate Adams' Lois and her "take no shit" attitude, which is perfectly in line with the best depictions of the character.
That line was one of the few eye-roll moments I had. I thought they could have come up with something more original.
I've never heard it used outside of movie land as lazy screenwriting shorthand for "look! I'm a take-no-shit female!"
I also found it quite jarring, as though everyone had already calmed down but Lois had gone in there with the absolute intention of using this cool line she just thought up in the helicopter...
Which is fine, I guess, but kinda strange.
I've heard the "dick measuring" comment used in real life quite a few times. Hell, you can probably find it used in TNZ numerous times if you run a search.
It's a completely plausible remark for someone who was a combat field reporter embedded with troops in Afghanistan and who deals with men in the corridors of power at the Pentagon, the Capitol, the White House, and in Metropolis on a regular basis. It probably came easy to her because she's used it before, and because she was expecting to run into resistance from the guys in command at the dig site.