Crossover Media Group, the content production and ad-sales rep firm, has bought an equity stake in Take On The Day, the production company co-founded in 2005 by longtime talk radio advice host and podcaster Dr. Laura Schlessinger. The deal follows a multi-year advertising-sales and production partnership between the two organizations.
Terms of the transaction were not announced.
Schlessinger spent 16 years in broadcast radio syndication before moving to satellite radio in 2010. Take On The Day’s properties include the popular “Dr. Laura Program,” now in its 14th year on SiriusXM, and two podcasts hosted by the National Radio Hall of Fame inductee: “Dr. Laura’s Call of the Day” and “Dr. Laura’s Deep Dive.”
Launched in 2017, the Dr. Laura Call of the Day podcast features calls pulled from her show on SiriusXM. It attracted 42 million downloads in 2023, up 17% vs. 2022. “Dr. Laura’s Deep Dive” is a companion weekly podcast.
“Throughout her more than four decades in talk radio and now podcasting, Dr. Laura has amassed an enormous following with her frank, direct, captivating style which is sometimes provocative, always interesting and insightful, and never dull,” Sue Freund, Crossover Media Group managing member, said in the announcement. “After many years of working with her and her team at Take On The Day, we’re proud to expand our relationship and commitment to her programs, and to continue to grow our presence as a leading partner to the nation’s top audio-talk hosts.”
CMG produces and/or sells advertising on more than 300 podcasts, encompassing the genres of true crime, news, sports, lifestyle and entertainment, delivering more than 50 million impressions per month.
As part of the acquisition, Freund and her partners, Ron Hartenbaum and Scott Calka, join the Take On The Day management team.
Geoff Rich, who co-founded Take On The Day with Schlessinger says the investment will enable her programming “to reach more listeners and help more sponsors.”
Said Schlessinger: “The best part is that there will be no change to the quality and content of my programs and podcasts. But Crossover will help us maximize our ability to reach more people, help more advertisers and continue the growth of my program that has been international since June 1994."