Getting to Know ABC News VP Debate Moderator Martha Raddatz

Oct. 11, 2012 -- Martha Raddatz has interviewed world leaders and four-star generals, walked among the injured after the devastating earthquake in Haiti and twice flown in an F15 fighter jet over Afghanistan -- but Thursday night she faces a new challenge: moderating the debate between Vice President Joe Biden and Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan.

Raddatz joked that dodging political barbs at the debate might be more frightening than dodging bullets in a war zone, "because you don't wear body armor," she said.

Tune in to ABCNews.com on Thursday for live streaming coverage of the 2012 Vice Presidential Debate moderated by ABC News' Martha Raddatz in Danville, Ky. Coverage kicks off with ABC News' live preview show at noon, and full debate coverage begins at 8 p.m.

Martha Raddatz was named senior foreign affairs correspondent for ABC News in November 2008 after serving as White House correspondent during the last term of President George W. Bush's administration. She first joined ABC News as the State Department correspondent in January 1999. Before that, she covered foreign policy, defense and intelligence issues for National Public Radio.

Her coverage has won numerous awards, including the Fred Friendly First Amendment Award this spring.

In her acceptance speech for that award, Raddatz said she wants "people to know about the world."

"I want people to remember," she said. "I want people to feel. I want people to question."

Raddatz has traveled to Iraq to cover the conflict there 21 times. She is the author of a New York Times bestselling book about her experiences there, "The Long Road Home -- a Story of War."

After decades of reporting on foreign affairs, Raddatz said she is honored to sit down with two men who have devoted so much of their lives to public service. Both Rep. Ryan, R-Wis., and Biden first came to Washington in their 20s and have remained there ever since.

Of Thursday's debate, Raddatz said, "I hope it's a forum in 90 minutes where you really do learn more about the total picture of who these candidates are and what difference they want to make. I hope you find some truth in their answers and by them debating one another that you can figure a few things out that maybe you didn't during the campaign."

The two top-of-the-ticket candidates, President Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, kicked off the series of presidential debates last week. Read a fact check of that debate here.