Following nearly annihilating our world, the families are allies’: the gripping podcast from JFK and Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, the planet edged closer to destruction than at any other point in modern times. This happened after an American surveillance aircraft discovered that Russian nuclear missile sites were being built on the island of Cuba, less than 100 miles from American soil. In response, U.S. President JFK commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime blockade encircling the island. The next phase constituted nearly two weeks filled with extreme anxiety.

The Unthinkable Danger

The peril was clear. If Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire against the other side, a series involving global atomic attacks and counterstrikes might have followed, casting civilization toward all-out ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented repeatedly, in volumes, films, and television programmes. However, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a novel dimension to this historical narrative. It is co-presented by Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members belonging to the men who, for two tense weeks, grasped the fate of the planet within their grasp.

"What were the Soviet side thinking? What were Washington considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and an academic specializing in international affairs.

For her, the unique appeal of the podcast is its endeavor to question: "Why do nations detest one another and confront each other?"

"I am acutely aware how spectacular it is that individuals have the potential to be friends or else can become complete enemies," adds Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and currently a writer and attorney. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly in instances where nations have gone to war, highlighting the sheer folly involved to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded so publicly, people globally were able to observe nearly as it happened while it crept towards disaster. However, the danger of annihilation was more imminent than what anybody understood at the time.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike and an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would have deployed a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have obliterated the naval vessels as well as destroyed our largest and most important naval force. In turn, we would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended all life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in remain calm and calmly negotiate when many advisors around them demanded action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the missiles from the Caribbean island while Kennedy (although not reported then) removed American missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was a feeling of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was felt by everyone. The podcast's presenters came into the world shortly after the crisis, with Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which portrayed an alternative narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father remembers it, and it was a scary time," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know a great deal about it, since it was a crisis, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly fine or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was distinct. "They told me what a great moment it was, as it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, thus avoided the war, seen as a positive thing," she continues. In the years to come, however, that view would not be shared by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying the United States."

A Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is so balanced and well produced so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This is, in part, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant aspect remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable for relatives of the heads of state of the United States and USSR to appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm with each other, has to be a sign of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate since we connected really well and we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, after nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages have become friends, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Echoes and Present Dangers

Or is it? Part of why this series seems so urgent is because we once again find ourselves in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, partly since world leaders appear not to have the capacity to learn