Under which noncommercial format did WNYU stand apart from mainstream stations?

I nearly had a heart attack when I first heard WNYU’s signal fading into static on my drive home, thinking we’d lost another independent voice forever. But it turned out they were just switching up their programming to their alternative and college rock format, which let them stand apart from mainstream stations by focusing on unsigned bands and deep cuts you’d never hear on corporate radio. That noncommercial, student-run approach kept them a vital source for underground music when everything else was over-polished.