John Dickerson is new 'Face the Nation' host

John Dickerson, CBS News' political director, will replace the retiring Bob Schieffer as moderator of Face the Nation when the 78-year old newsman retires this summer.

"I'm thrilled," Dickerson said. "I have watched Bob my whole professional life not just as a viewer but as a daily reporter who also covered the Hill. I'm honored to carry on his tradition on Face the Nation."

Schieffer, who told Paste BN earlier this week that the network would name the new host "quickly," introduced his successor on his show Sunday.

Dickerson "sure has the right bloodlines," Schieffer said on Sunday's broadcast. "His Mother Nancy Dickerson was the first female correspondent in the CBS News Washington bureau."

Dickerson, who has been political director for CBS News since 2011, is deeply familiar with Face the Nation, having appeared on the show 83 times. Her mother was an associate producer on the first Face the Nation broadcast, CBS noted.

"John is first and foremost a reporter — and that's what he'll be as anchor of Face the Nation," CBS News President David Rhodes said in a statement. "His work in the studio will always be informed by what he's learned in Iowa, in New Hampshire, on Capitol Hill — anywhere there's news."

Dickerson spent most of his career as a print journalist, working at Time magazine from 1993 to 2005 before moving on to Slate. He was Time's White House correspondent in his last four years at the magazine, covering the presidency of George W. Bush. He joined CBS News as an on-air political analyst in April 2009 and helped covered the 2012 presidential campaign.