PROVO — Salt Lake City Weekly is the sort of paper that does not shrink from controversy.
So when the Provo Library at Academy Square yanked the alternative weekly from its shelves, City Weekly editors silently thanked them for the free publicity.
"We were thinking it would at least get people in Provo to go out and pick up the paper to see what all the hullabaloo is about," City Weekly Editor Ben Fulton said.
The hullabaloo began a few months back when library administrators decided to ban the 60,500-circulation paper because of complaints about its at-times racy content and risque covers.
Now, the paper is back — but instead of occupying a rack on the first floor, the tabloid will be found in the periodicals section upstairs.
That's where the paper belongs, said library director Gene Nelson, not because of its content, but because that's where other newspapers are stored, such as the Deseret Morning News and The Salt Lake Tribune.
The racks on the first floor that once held stacks of free newspapers — including City Weekly and Thrifty Nickel — often became messy. On more than one occasion, patrons had slipped on scattered papers on their way to the bathroom.
Parents had also complained that the paper, which sometimes features articles on sex, was in plain view of children.
"If the only issue was its content, we would have looked at it differently," Nelson said. "I'm very concerned as a professional about freedom of speech."
Earlier this week, Provo resident Andrew Thompson, an artist, wanted to know why the paper wasn't available, prompting Nelson's staff to review their decision to pull the paper from the library's offerings.
On Wednesday, Nelson met with two leaders of the library's governing board and Provo's chief administrative officer for three hours to discuss the issue.
After mulling it over for a few days, Nelson decided Friday to bring the paper back.
"We know the majority viewpoint is heard here, but we have a responsibility to do what we can to provide opportunities for minority voices, as well. That's one of the functions of a public library," he said.
Fulton agrees, and while he contends that there is nothing in City Weekly that is inappropriate for children, he said he doesn't mind the library's decision to keep the most recent copy of the paper on hand in the periodicals section.
"We would have preferred to have a rack, but as long as they're giving us equal footing with other newspapers and not discriminating, we're fine with it," he said.
Fulton said there are 37 other libraries along the Wasatch Front that keep racks stocked with copies of City Weekly. He said he understands Utah County's conservative politics but doesn't agree with residents who try to keep out opposing viewpoints, whether those views are expressed by filmmaker Michael Moore or within the pages of City Weekly.
"Sometimes it seems like there are people who live down there who would like to seal the community in a plastic bubble to keep out any outside influences," Fulton said. "If people want to live in a sealed bubble, more power to them. But I think it's a losing battle."
E-mail: jhyde@desnews.com