much more "fast money" right after this. >>> the final word from the former viacom ceo tom freston, herean exclusive interview. tom, i want to get your take on the future of the company. there have been a lot of people who floated the idea that cbs and viacom should merge. could les be the ideal candidate to lead this combined company? >> look, les is like the perfect entertainment executive. he's done a great job. he's a great guy. done a great job at cbs. and the company was once together, and worked pretty well. whether they get together again now, it's not for me to say. les and the board there might have a lot of other things on their plate. it's really not for me to say. but that would be an interesting combination, an obvious one. >> we were talking about a period in which you think that there's a fall from grace which implies viacom was once a great media company. do you think it can retain that size? or has the world changed around them to the point it's got to reinvent itself? >> well, it's still a great company. i don't want to -- they've had steps and falls. and there are ups

. >> let welcome back our good friend tom freston. on fast line with latest news. tom, welcome back to the show purchase hi. >> is the writing at this point on the wall in terms of philippe dauman's fate. >> it would appear so but you never know. once again, this is going to be thrown back into the courts. so the soap opera seems to continue without any certainty. this would appear to be a good fresh step for viacom, a new viacom. >> you spoke to -- go ahead. >> i have no idea how this is going to be -- how this will translate in the courts. >> have you spoken to shari redstone, there's an allegation by salerno she's used by redstone. >> i haven't spoken to shari. i don't know anything about what's going on with shari and her dad. in a conversation a while ago she told me she was dealing with him. i didn't get specific information. i certainly got a sense he was aware of what was going on and not at the picture that had been painted by philippe. >> who do you think is calling the shots in this instance? >> i really don't know. i would

and so yesterday on "fast money" we spoke to tom freston. >> well, the lawsuits and everything else haseen a side show compared to the real story which is the fall of viacom from grace over the last several years that have been really one of the leading television networking companies in the business and now it is falling to a level below the peers on almost every metric plagued by all problems including the creative departures. >> and freston is outspoken, nick, and how does this move the ball forward? to what degree will we see any resolution in this saga? >> i, all i can hope for is that there is someone in that building with a video camera filming this whole thing, because it is the pr fekt bookend to the real world years ago. it doesn't seem like it is going to end any time soon. and freston had a number of good point, and viacom was the number one in everything when it comes to youth. i remember growing up watching mtv, and coming of age with comedy central, and all tof the things that viacom spearheaded and now the kids are watching the videos on youtube, and they use all of the

. >> and let me ask you, because tom freston was on the network a couple of times this week. >> and yesamazing, and one of the best interviews i have ever seen. >> appreciate you saying that, and he was asked the question of whether he would like to return, and in a xas as ceo or perhaps even otherwise, and i know that you are suggestion is for viacom to be put together with cbs and les moonves to run the show, but should freston come back and could he run the company now? >> i think that tom is having the time of his life making the world a better place, and the last thing he wants to do is to go back into the day-to-day corporate shuffle, but there are several other executives logically left, but there are other executives that are more suited and frankly, just younger. the reality is that in many ways whoever is put day-to-day in charge of mtv and they need an infusion of the youth, and the one thing that they have lost touch with is the connection to the millennial generation. >> rich, i appreciate your joining us, and i know that my friends at "five" appreciate the shoutout on the

. >>> and the ceo tom freston will join us at 5:00 p.m. eastern time on cnbc. to sue her rera for t late arest. >> this is going to concern the s.e.c. that sanche valvane has reaped money that was from health care securities. he al leblgedly did it by insider trading on tips that he received from a man named gordon johnson who worked at the fda for a dozen years. mr. johnsonle allegedly remained in close contact with the colleagues at the fda and he did not reveal at that point allegedly that he also was consulting for hedge funds. and now, valvane does work for visiu m, the big hedge fund, and we will follow this, but back to you. >> thank you, sue. >> and larry summers is taking a shot at janet yellen in an op-ed post, and what does that mean ahead of the fed statement? we will be right back. >>> larry summers is take ing a shot at the fed and chair janet yellen in an op-ed for the "washington post" and steve l s liesman is live there ahead of the important fed statement, and steve, it is hardly the first time that larry summers has done it, but the argument

tom freston has harsh words for the company's current management. "fast money," freston came down pretty hard on ceo philippe dauman. >> is he the right guy for the job right now? >> i would say no. >> some described him as an arrogant elitist. would you agree with those words? >> totally. >> totally. >> yes. and, you know, i -- has a reputation of not being a great listener. >> they're currently embroiled in a high-stakes legal battle over control of the media company. you can see more of the interview on cnbc.com. >>> when we come back, former white house chief of staff bill daley joins us. this is right after the break. stick around. "squawk box" will be right back. >>> i wa >>> welcome back to squawk. among the stories front and center at this hour. full slate of economic data. jobless claims and may consumer price index. >>> cpi forecast to rise 2% on higher gas prices. look for current account figures for the first quarter. at 10:00 a.m., the national association of home buildings monthly survey. >>> despite sluggish global growth and inflation

tom freston will be here on set. what went wrong, who's to blame and would he return as ceo. interview this hour. plus, worried about a brexit. we may have found four stocks that could be the most vulnerable if england opts out of the european union. one mega tech stock is about to reclaim its dotcom bubble highs. why traders are so bullish right

later on cnbc, former viacom crowe tom freston will be on "fast money." >>> if you're wondering where tyler is, don't worry, he's rocking it, in denver at the iconic conference, where cnbc and "inc." magazine have teamed up to find some of the most interesting start-ups across america. shoet the show is packed with great guests. earlier today fans shared how she used her youtube fame to create her own make-up start-up. >> i did so by really just building my influence, creating content, generating authentic content that speaks directly to my audience and finding a key solution to what they want. which was really they wanted to have a better beauty discovery experience. so this really helped inspire the conception of itsy. a lot of people are starting to invest more in content. know that people are going to want to subscribe. i think subscription is still a very powerful concept. residual income really helps. helps you project you know you're growing, earnings, but most importantly, the value really starts with the product that you create. >> also chip wilson pulling no punches, he had

they really did have opportunities going aback from jonathan to tom freston who melissa lee had a tremendoush him, congratulations to melissa on that, but those people had an argument and perhaps sumner redstone should have kept them. the one argument that shows that redstone has his wits about him is he has the good sense at least now to get rid of dohmen. this is a category i have called the hero's farewell, a monarch. they leave there is one person indispensable. sumner redstone said to larry king in 2009 that the people who are afraid of dying are the people who are going to die. i'm not going to die. rupert murdoch has a very similar view on his own longevity and it does create problems. >> in "hamilton" there was written, death does not discriminate against the sinners or the saints so i don't know if mr. redstone has that right. let's pivot a little bit. how does that play out in your sort of -- >> i think at this point whether sumner or his daughter exercising his influence, philippe is out. he's done. he's over. and i think the irony here is all the confusion, all the lawsuits going

former ceo tom freston, no fan of dauman's leadership talked up some of the new board members like kennethat mtv before she went to run discovery communications. >> it's fair to assume that, with clear management direction, with this reconstituted board that's going to certainly want to hit the ground running and take quick action, that there will be positive things happen for viacom in its future. >> well, analysts seem to want change. btig has upgraded viacom to buy. rbc capital to a sector perform. that's an upgrade. wells fargo out with a report that says, quote, is this drama coming to an end? maybe, guys. we have to see what the court in delaware says. back to you. >> thank you, jane. we appreciate it very much. we'll watch for the next installment of this drama. i assume. >>> to our guest host. joining us now. want to tell you what we're going to talk about with dr. sam waksal, who is the founder of biopharma. former ceo of imclone. here is what you -- we only have an hour too. talk about valeant, which for a long time -- you can go all the way back to stuff you said to mike pearson