Identnut said:
Well, David, Carribean tropical is not just salsa, but merengue and bachata, and for most tropical outlets in the US, Reggaetón is also a primary format.
Bachata is no more tropical than a décima, a bambuco or a jaropo... to name a few comparable styles from elsewhere in the Caribbean Basin. Having programmed both Zeta and Salsoul in PR and Z101 in Santo Domingo, I do know the differences.
X plays little mainstream pop, unlike Mix in Miami, which added a lot of it to its playlist. The pop it plays is mostly rhythmic stuff along the lines of Lady Gaga and the Black Eyed Peas.
"Top 40" does not mean "pop." It means "the most popular songs of the moment." "Rhythmic Top 40" (Or "Rhythmic CHR" which means the same thing) is one of the variants, with maybe the best examples being Power 106 in LA and Hot in NY; there are, like this case, those who think that the difference in blend disqualifies them but in general they are accepted CHRs.
WXNY plays the hits.
There is little overlap between X and the closest thing to a Spanish Top-40 in NYC, WPAT.
Hot and Z 100 are both variants of CHR in NY. The degree of overlap is not huge.
Beyond that, a station named Amor is not a CHR... it is AC. It's library, rotations, etc. are AC. Like rhythmic CHR and mainstream CHR, there are AC variants, with some being rather current oriented, and others playing no currents at all.
Even if you compare it to the Spanish Top-40 par excellence, WKAQ, they only have in common the urban music, and whatever salsa and merengue hits make their way into the playlist.
And if you compare it to RCN's Mega in Bogotá, you will find nearly no overlap. Top 40 is not international, or even national. It's whatever is popular in a particular market. The main CHRs stations in Mexico City don't play reggaetón, but one or two secondary ones do. But they are all CHR.