should get a list of publishers, sort them by display name, and create a select with a default value as the first option

sorted_publishers_select_tag.rb

def sorted_publishers_select_tag(default_option = nil)
    publishers = Publisher.accessible_by(current_user.ability)
    publishers.sort!{ |a,b| a.display_name.downcase <=> b.display_name.downcase }
    
    options_tag = options_from_collection_for_select(publishers, 'id', 'display_name', params[:publisher_id])
    if default_option.nil?
      options = {}
    else
      # after sorting we need to stick in the default value so it's at the top
      options = {:include_blank => default_option }
    end

    content_tag :select, options_tag, {"name" => 'publisher_id', "id" => 'publisher_id'}.update(options.stringify_keys)
end