WPLG’s Dave Boylan ‘Retiring’ To Rentrak

When he turns 62 in a couple of weeks, WPLG General Manager Dave Boylan will retire from Post-Newsweek Stations and his current post as GM of ABC affiliate WPLG Miami, but not entirely from the broadcasting business.

According to Boylan, he has been elected to the board of Rentrak, the audience measurement firm that has been loosening Nielsen’s lock on TV ratings with its own “census” TV ratings based on set-top box data. He will also act as a consultant, helping to sell Rentrak services to broadcasters.

“I think you will see me with my sleeves rolled up,” he says. “I will be working on an issue of importance to every broadcaster — more accurate measurement.”

Having worked in Miami with its large Spanish-language population has made him “keenly aware of the need for better ratings,” he says.

In the market, he says, Nielsen’s news ratings for English-language stations are determined by a sample of just a few dozen homes with local people meters.

With the announcement of his retirement from Post-Newsweek, Boylan relinquished the chairmanship of the ABC Affiliate Board. Vice Chairman Mike Devlin, GM of Belo’s WFAA Dallas, has replaced him in that role.

Boylan logged 40 years in broadcasting, 27 as a general manager. In addition to WPLG, Boylan ran Fox O&Os  in Los Angeles (KTTV), Tampa (WTVT) and Greenboro-High Point, N.C. (WGHP).

Boylan had no comment on who might replace him at WPLG.