VP Biden, Gingrich, Paul to appear on first hour-long FTN

Vice President Joe Biden will appear on CBS News' FACE THE NATION during its first hour-long broadcast on Sunday, April 1. CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent and Anchor of FACE THE NATION, Bob Schieffer, conducted the wide-ranging interview on Thursday in Milwaukee. Excerpts of the interview will be broadcast tonight, March 29, on the CBS EVENING NEWS WITH SCOTT PELLEY (6:30-7:00 PM) and tomorrow, March 30, on CBS THIS MORNING (7:00-9:00 AM) on the CBS Television Network.

"For 57 years, FACE THE NATION has covered the biggest stories and the most important newsmakers in American politics," said Schieffer. "Starting Sunday, we'll bring you a full hour. It's about time!"

During the hour-long broadcast of FACE THE NATION, others guests will include Republican presidential candidates Newt Gingrich and Congressman Ron Paul. Romney campaign adviser Kevin Madden, CBS News political correspondent Jan Crawford and political director John Dickerson, along with PBS NewsHour and Washington Week's anchor Gwen Ifill, will discuss the 2012 presidential race and the Supreme Court's hearings on the Affordable Care Act.

FACE THE NATION will also debut its newly designed website at www.facethenation.com. The website features a new segment called "Bob's Blog," an interactive FACE THE NATION "lineup," behind-the-scenes photo galleries, footage from the FACE THE NATION archives and a live Twitter feed with tweets from @FacetheNation, @BobSchieffer, @NorahODonnell and @JohnDickerson.

In addition, FACE THE NATION will expand the political discussion by collaborating with Google to present Google+ Hangouts on Air, a series of online video conversations revolving around a specific theme, led by the FACE THE NATION team of Schieffer, political director John Dickerson and chief White House correspondent Norah O'Donnell. The first Google+ Hangout on Air will take place on April 5 on the FACE THE NATION Google+ Page. Highlights from that conversation will be broadcast on FACE THE NATION on April 8.

FACE THE NATION is broadcast Sundays (check local listings) on the CBS Television Network. Mary Hager is the Executive Producer. FACE THE NATION is one of the longest-running news programs in the history of television. It premiered on CBS on Nov. 7, 1954. The program broadcasts from Washington, D.C., where Schieffer has spent more than 40 years covering government and politics. He has anchored "FACE THE NATION" since 1991. Guests include government leaders, politicians and global figures in the news.