In her new Washington Post column — debuting today — Tina Brown takes on the public relations mess in the wake of the MPAA screener ban. In one little column, Tina manages to smack the rabidities of publicist Peggy Siegal and the acting talents of Gwyneth Paltrow. On the history of screening copies, she writes:

"It was always such a great opportunity for lordly condescension among movie execs, to be able to send out ribboned boxes of the latest Christmas movies to 500 of their closest Botox artists, dog walkers and Kabbalah gurus. And for otherwise perkless recipients it was a nod that you were an insider. You might be a miserable entertainment scribe eating Chinese takeout in a socklike apartment, but a box of Oscar screeners arriving by FedEx told you you were cool."

Best of all, Ms. Brown will be appearing in a live chat today at 11 a.m. at Washington Post Live Online. Prep your questions now!
After Oscar Video Ban, Screening All Calls