How do these self publishing sites work? The book isn't coming up in a search on the website or on the internet for me.
Maybe my prejudice against the Daily Mail is just too strong.
Okay, so I don't know about the company he used. But for the authors I have worked for as an independent editor, the self-publishing company is usually providing the bare minimum of support--editorial, design, production, distribution. Coming from a traditional publishing background, I know that what they're doing is often kind of cheap or half-assed. But if you didn't have background in the industry, you wouldn't be the wiser.
They'll get you onto Amazon and produce physical copies of your books and, depending on the service, may provide more than that, but the onus of promotion/marketing is on the author. It wouldn't surprise me if they're not advertising the book on the website, especially since it is so poor quality and has an unpleasant notorious connection.
To be fair, some really good authors go the self-pub route because their book, for whatever reason, is not marketable or they don't want to mess with traditional publishing or they want to retain control of the process. But, of course, a lot of people who have no business writing books also use it.
Edited to add: you get better service and quality the more you shell out money-wise. I doubt he was in the financial position to do more than order their most basic package.
MOO but based on industry experience