we'll show you what that lawsuit against viacom could mean for your cable bill. >>> plus we'll followe knows what he's doing. right now it's time to show you this morning's headline. the boston globe says harvard university is admitting it hacked e-mails of 16 deans. they say it was necessary. the search was triggered by the league of a confidential e-mail about last year's student cheating scandal. >>> "usa today" looks at how members of congress spend their time. a study released monday 90sfinds the lawmaker makes 50 hours a week in their district and 70 hours a week in washington. only about a third of the time is actually spent on legislating. >> the st. louis post dispatch reports a sinkhole swallowed a golfer on friday. the man dropped into the ground on the fairway of the 14th hole. he was pulled to safety 20 minutes later but he dislocated his shoulder. >>> and "the wall street journal" looks at march madness vatican style. a man has created a game that gives you a chance to vote online for the new pope. it divides cardinals in brackets to see who would make the best pope. tho

the suit says viacom strong-armed cablevision into carrying 14 lesser-watched channels or pay a penalty of nearly a billion dollars. some think the suit's outcome could lead consumers to pay only for the channels they watch, but at higher prices. "pay more than what i pay now for just the channels i watch? i don't like what i'm paying now." "if they want to break this up, charge more for espn. prices will go higher." in a statement on its website, viacom says "cablevision is crying foul over a standard business practice that expands choice and lowers cost for consumers." cable has been losing customers in the last three years, a casualty of recession-era belt-tightening. but the prices haven't rolled back, and some - but not everyone - predict they could go even higher - to $200 a month. "that won't happen. they simply can't keep doing it." so far, the recent drop in cable subscribers is a fraction of the total number of consumers who pay for tv programming - about one-tenth of one-percent. "not a disruption," according to one analyst. foreclosures are falling. bank repossessions - the

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applause] and and the whackest revelation was yet to come from both network's parent company and mine viacom. >> the company came out and said that it had indeed been a hack hack attack. they admitted they staged the entire thing. it was a hoax. mtv tweeted saying we capfished you guys. thanks for playing. >> stephen: we were totally catfished. they made us fall in love by the fact that we were duped by synergies. summer redstone you crazy millenniael. this off the hook markets is certain to build brand awareness. i just hope this eyeball driving doesn't happen to my twitter feed and boot boost it 30%. let's check in with my director of teen out rich (bleep) so we'll check in with our director of teen outreach and internet security glenn. [cheers and applause] wassup, bro-ham. >> sorry to rustle your jitters but we were hacked by vh-1 classic. >> stephen: oh, snap. >> that (bleep) is craze. yolo. gman out! [laughter] >> stephen: glenn, everybody. [cheers and applause] what is that hip? nation, this is terrible, this is terrible. everyone quick go join my twitter page at stephenathome right n

and i could not be prouder that this show is a profitmaking tsunami for my parent company viacom.[laughter] make no mistake, i am the reason ceo philippe daumann can afford his daily saffron and rosewater scrotum dips. [laughter] fresh as a daisy, sir. fresh as a daisy. [ laughter ] so when corporate calls and says, "steveo we need a sponsor integration for halls mentholyptus on your show tonight," i say, "am i contractually obligated to?" they say, "yes." i say, "then i love it." [laughter] of course, i have to protect my reputation as a newsman. i can't be selling my name to the highest bidder. so instead i'm selling my intern's name. halls, get out here! [cheers and applause] so, how does it feel to be america's number-one cough drop, halls? >> my name is jay. >> stephen: not anymore. [laughter] okay, i've already filed paperwork to legally change it. >> so my legal name is halls mentholyptus? >> stephen: well, technically, it's halls mentholyptus with triple soothing action presents jay the intern. [laughter] >> does this mean i get paid now? >> stephen: absolutely-- you're ge

it is now part of the viacom empire. off critics ofok the years, including spike lee, who complained that b.e.t. include too much sex and violence by pointing out that in the name stood for entertaining. thesold his stake to -- in shot about cooks to martin -- to michael jordan. the charlotte bobcats to michael jordan. announced itlj was acquiring two content companies to create an online distributor. in february, the company announced a website to match minority job seekers with employers and minority business owners with applicants. mr. johnson said a chief reason he created the site was to reduce the disparity for unemployment for african- americans. mr. johnson is known for his 15th hour work days and 60 workweeks. he is a native of mississippi and grew up in illinois. his early work included delivering newspapers. something was required him to get up too early to do. after college at the university of illinois and graduate school at princeton university, he found his way to washington and into a series of jobs, incl

viacom wants you to have mtv and vh1 and all their other channels. >> the free markets here would say they don't have enough ratings to -- to remain in business, except for that one program that they can come up with each year, maybe they shouldn't be in business. but that's for another time. that's another story. >> or they shouldn't be charging that. >> exactly. then they wouldn't be able to remain in business because they wouldn't have enough money on hand to produce "the hatfields & mccoys." thanks, guys. >>> while we were chatting the market continued a bit lower. here we're down 56 points on the dow with about 12 minutes left in the trading day. >> this market is dropping as we approach the close. will europe spark the correction so many have been predicting. we'll take a look next. >>> also we're hear from somebody who says you'd be mad to touch your portfolio during march madness. why that could be a huge investment mistake later on cth "closing bell." just go online to pay, print and have your packages picked up for free. we'll do the rest. ♪ with fidelity's new options platf

viacom is looking to expand the diversity of its board appointing deborah norville, anchor of "insideusual move. she'll be the only television anchor to sit on the board of a media conglomerate and we can't find any other talents sitting on boards in the past. the criticism that norville doesn't have business experience, she has a 30-plus year career in media so she's very familiar with the workings of the business which adds valuable diversity to the board. >> tony rival says the surprise move should, quote, round out the perspective of the board, but that she's an unknown variable given her limited history. david miller calls it an interesting choice considering that vie viacom doesn't operate networks, but he says the company, quote, probably saw an opportunity to add a female director with the wealth of experience in media and social and political issues. viacom's other employment christianna falcone sorrell, is from the world economic forum and happens to be married to sir martin sorrell from wpp. as to questions as to whether that poses a conflict of interest, viacom tells me th

wholly owned subsidiary of the corporate state you have a half dozen corporations viacom general electric rupert murdoch's news corp disney clear channel that control almost everything most americans watch or listen to and you know as i wrote in that column a lot of omission is still a lot. a hold of political puppets. you know as part of discussion of sharod. of to deflect attention from where our actually resides and that's in the hands of corporations it's impossible within the american political system to vote against the interests of goldman sachs and so we don't hear anything about climate change the poor rural and urban poor are rendered invisible in this country and they're really suffering at this point i just finished a book on it two years on a days of destruction days of revolt with the cartoonist joe sacco out of the poorest pockets of the country we don't hear anything about the assault against civil liberties whether that be. section ten twenty one of the national defense authorization act warrantless wiretapping the use of the espionage act or shut down whistleblowers the.

he sold it viacom after taking private seven years after the ipo. it's now part of the viacom empire which includes comedy central, knick load began, spike and more. he shook off crit iblgs over the years directing of spike complaining that b et programming included too much and violation pointing out it stands for entertainment. mr. johnson is the former majority owner of the expansion nba franchise the charlotte bobcats. he sold the stake to michael jordan three years ago. he's raising chairman as rlj companies and investing in businesses in and out of media entertainment. rlj's portfolio is too long to list it includes real estate, private equity, car.pro, and the video industry. to create an online distributer of digital video content. they launched the website to match minority job seekers with employers and minority business owners with applicants. mr. johnson said a cheap reason he created the site was to reduce the disparty in unemployment for minority americans. mr. johnson, a father of two, is known for the fifteen-hour workdays and six-da

it's all about bundling, which is when viacom sells sells you d also chev you vh2 and vh3 and classicness. so people are watching the five and goes to commercial, maybe they come over to money with mel lace and watch that. that's what bundling is. but a result is people now have a thousand channels and research shows they only watch five or team. so people are saying i'm paying for a thousand channels. and it all goes into the human -- huge bill and cable providers trying to be more responsive because their fleeing in droves, going to netflix, but they want to bundle things together. >> you mentioned apple and netflix. shows like howard of cards -- >> i was watching it last night. i have my apple tv. >> 795 a month i'd pay just for that. >> absolute limp that how more people are watching twit, À la carte. they're going to -- both something like roku or apple tv, going through netflix, and they're streaming television and that's what cable and satellite are battling. they're trying to stop people from fleeing. it's tough. there are 27.5 million subscribers to netflix. that number is ri

broad outlines for its web tv service with network owners including time warner and nbc universal, viacomit is not as far along with talks with some of the other networks but it isn't pushing for a la carte subscriptions but this is something that will be developing obviously and intel will have to pay a premium as the new kid on the block. that is something that is worth noting but web tv service, we'll continue to follow it. liz: don't count out these guys. they want to do tv differently. they know it has to be amazing and different if it will work. we'll be watching. david: huge pop for intel. thank you, nicole. >> drama is far from over in cyprus as questions remained unanswered and more cypriot people take to the streets to protest. david: the country once again denying people access to their money and keeping banks closed for at least two more days. rich edson is live on the ground of nicosia, cyprus. people are mad there. are they to the point of rioting? >> not to the point of rioting, david. i have to say the protests are very peaceful. most protest some people are spray painting

we know there's a suit over viacom about bundling practices. espn such a great brand for you.evails, do you worry that entertainment companies like yourself are going to find it harder to sell, you know, these big packages of cable channels, where people are really paying for espn ander th they're taking some of the other channels that perhaps they would not have paid for. >> in our case, i can't comment specifically about that lawsuit. i'm not familiar with the details. i haven't been fully briefed yet, but we have great channels. espn is one that you mentioned. the disney channel was another, number one with kids 2 to 11 this past year. very successful. for the distributor, for the viewer, and of course for disney. abc is another channel. we've managed to have great relationships with distributors foreign wide, cable operators, satellite providers, and have cut long-term deals with many of them, without roadway rancor, without having to resort to saber rattling and the like. and one of the reasons we've been able to do that is, these deals are mutually beneficial. we're prov

>> joining viacom board of directors. do you think one of us could go on the comcast board?eird that deborah norville is going to be on the board of directors at viacom? i mean, it's great but i'm feeling better about myself. >> she has a syndicated show. >> i hope this won't offend you, but are you going on the board of comcast? the answer to that would be no. >> maybe g.e. maybe it would be a good thing to write. i don't want to be on a board that would have me as a director, actually, now that i think about it. uh, yeah. lulu lemon maybe. i want more sheerness in the yoga pants. i want more see through. anyway, comments, questions -- i'd make some bad decisions fiduciarily. e-mail us at squawk@cnbc. up next, the clock is ticking in cyprus as bank lines grow longer. the latest on talks to beat a monday deadline when the ecb is threatening to cut off funding. and harvard upset number three seed new mexico. 68-62. one of the ones i lost. i was asleep, though. crimson's first ever ncaa tournament win. the loss could be a bracket buster. we have our own brackets here on "squaw

he sold it to viacom seven days after its ipo. part of the viacom empire, which also includes comedy central, nickelodeon, spike tv, and much more. mr. johnson shook off critics over the years, including spike lee, the complainant that bet programming included too much sex and violence. mr. johnson is the former majority owner of the charlotte bobcats. he sold his stake to michael jordan three years ago. in his post bet career, he is raising money as chairman of rlj and investing in businesses in and out of media entertainment. includes real estate, private equity, and the video lottery in february the company launched the website to match minority business owners with africans. mr. johnson said a chief reason that he created this site was to reduce the disparity in unemployment for minority americans. mr. johnson, a father of two children, is known for his 15 hour workdays and 60 work weeks. he is a native of hickory, mississippi, and he broke with his nine siblings in freeport, illinois. his early work included delivering newspa

to create a kinder, braver world and just the impact of the foundation in terms of partnering with viacom. that's later in the month and we thank you, everybody, born brave and we thank you, lady gaga. coming up here, more with grumpy cat. >> now from abc7 news, good morning, i am kristen sze. in marin county traffic is back to normal on southbound 101 after loose boulders and rocked rolled on the freeway. several drivers hit the boulders and flattened tires and causing other damage. boulders rolled on the lane at 5:00 this morning and shut down several lanes of traffic south of the waldo tunnel. sue? >> back to san jose, we have a sig-alert southbound 1280 all morning with an early fatality. two right lanes remain blocked. the best alternate is 880 to 101 and we do have a new accident at richmond san rafael bridge westbound beyond the toll plaza. >> the weekend forecast with our >> good morning, check out this beautiful picture from mount tamalpais, the breezes are picking up and will bring us warm weather today, at four to eight degrees warmer-than-average and the coast will be up to 60

what if viacom, what if some, you know, outside guy like net flix or amazon or apple?ssibles here? >> keep in mind right now even with the publishing, the television business is generally about 80% of the time warner's results so the core of that business is television. when you have the spinoff completed, that percentage will be even much higher so overall, i would think that this transaction is going to leave you with a company that, you know, has a much better growth profile. we look for sustainable, double digit growth for several years. you're going to have a much more pure content. are we in a company that's going to be leveraging a lot of this content across various platforms. we know that publishing is also benefitting from digital but that's not what we're seeing on television and on the film side. so you're going to have a much better company that i think investors will be more attracted to. dennis: breaking up is good to do sometimes. thank you very much. great job. >> thank you. cheryl: banking on the feds. the federal reserve set to release round one of th

chop shop, buy it, break it up, sell off pieces, it could merge maybe instead with a rival like a viacom, maybe it gets bought as a big content shop by an inner looper, say an amazon or apple or even netflix. so stay tuned, dudes. tracy: all right, then. ashley: thank you, dude, thank you dennis. ashley: for more on a state's fiscal future, we are joined by the virginia governor bob mcdonald. governor, thank you for being here. of all the states that are vulnerable to the sequestration, virginia in particular with its home to so much of the defense industry, how has these automatic cuts impacted your state so far? >> well, thanks for having me on, ashley. i appreciate it. sequestration was meant to be a hammer, not a policy. people expected the last 18 months it would actually get solved and it hasn't. so the problem with it of course as you take the entitlement reform and cuts off the table, and you put half of the cuts on defense, it's just a really horrible policy. what it means is a trillion dollars with previous cuts, plus sequestration over ten years. it's a couple hundred thousand

do you think him you saw it you said yourself that viacom is that correct?[inaudible] spent i did some counsel with the va. i was completely underwhelmed with the care i received and ended up pursuing counseling and the private sector. >> you answered my question before i asked because i was going to ask you if you failed like the counselors there had an awareness of what the real problem was, but obvious a ghetto fixup. >> accounts or i spoke to was a combat veteran from vietnam. a committed individual, however after spin my first three sessions do nothing but data entry, with something through technology, probably could have taken about five minutes but instead took probably two to five hours of my life but i was too frustrated to continue and so i saw private sector care. >> i have a question for you regarding ms. ruocco's testimony. she had recommendation to one was the first contact with it. to navigate through their first catholic session, is that not right? >> that was observation number one. observation number four was cut out the paperwork that it t

this area of the economy whether it be time warner and whether it be viacom and charter or time warneress and these have been big winners, carl, and i think a lot of it is housing and you buy a house and you have household formation and you bring the cable in. >> yes. >> this is a rising tide, wind at their back story. i like it. i've got to be careful again because we do work for them. >> of course. they say q-1 will be challenging for nbc, but "the voice" tonight with shakira. >> they have usher. he happens to be the few people in america that i'm taller then. not cooler, but taller. >> i think almost cooler, too. >> e on, geez. >> when we come back, could today finally be the day? could they take aim at the all-time closing high. three and a half minutes. >>> you're watching cnbc "squawk on the street." the opening bell set to ring in 30 secondses. the number to watch today 1655.15, once again. the s&p record watch continues despite all of the craziness in the eu over the weekend, over the past ten days. i mean, people think there's something perverse about that, jim, for better or