Richard Carrier 'enhances' the status of his publisher
Who publishes your specialist book is a vital element in determining the attention and baseline respect it's accorded by both academics and the public.
There is a general hierarchy of publishers running from top tier Uni Press, other Uni Press, private academic press, commercial main street press and finally vanity press (some subjects will vary this by having specific uniquely placed publishers).
Carrier has consistantly put his publisher (Sheffield Phoenix Press) in the university print house category. He wasn't silly enough to call it Sheffield University Press - but he used that term in lower case.
Typically he would say his book was 'published by the university' or by the print arm of the uni or some such stuff.
This was all picked up by Jan Steen of the Pit.
Sheffield Phoenix Press is a private academic press run by 3 uni staff using Uni facilities. They acknowledge the company is not in any way formally affiliated with or endorsed by the institution.
I had a twitter argument with Carrier over his usage before the sensible option of asking Sheffield University was undertaken - and I received the email response Damion posted above.
Carrier has basically been academically gilding his lilly - whether by intent or thru ignorance. I seriously doubt he doesn't know the distinction between a Uni endorsed publisher and an independant academic press.
His usage below is way beyond any simple confusion with SPP's loose geo-connection with Sheffield.
......................
Examples of his use:
a major academic press specializing in biblical studies: Sheffield-Phoenix,
the publishing house of the University of Sheffield (UK).
http://web.archive.org/web/20150820110826/http://freethoughtblogs.com/carrier/archives/4090
Ehrman has refused to even address my peer reviewed,
Sheffield university press book On the Historicity of Jesus.
http://freethoughtblogs.com/carrier/archives/1794
given that my Historicity book was
published by Sheffield University
http://freethoughtblogs.com/carrier/archives/6621
will discuss evidence in his book On the Historicity of Jesus (
published by Sheffield University)
http://freethoughtblogs.com/carrier/archives/7943
I have documented it all in my book On the Historicity of Jesus, published by Sheffield-Phoenix,
the publishing arm of the University of Sheffield.
http://freethoughtblogs.com/carrier/archives/8761