‘After nearly annihilating the world, the families have become friends’: the gripping podcast from John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s descendants.

In the month of October 1962, humanity veered nearer to ruin than at any other point in modern times. This transpired following the discovery that an American surveillance aircraft identified that Soviet atomic weapon sites were under construction in Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, President JFK ordered a naval task force to impose a maritime quarantine encircling Cuba. The next phase constituted nearly 14 days of unbearable stress.

An Catastrophic Threat

The peril was clear. Should Kennedy, or his Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a chain reaction involving worldwide atomic strikes followed by retaliatory strikes would have followed, casting mankind toward total oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented extensively, in books, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" introduces a completely new perspective into the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures who, over two tense weeks, held the destiny of the world in their hands.

"What was the Russians thinking? What was the American side considering?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also a professor of global relations.

In her view, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to explore: "Why do nations detest one another to the point they confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that humans have the potential to be allies or can become complete adversaries," states Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to the late president and now an author and lawyer. "We see this dynamic over and over when countries have gone to war, demonstrating the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

The Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens around the world were able to observe nearly in real time as it crept closer to armageddon. Nonetheless, the risk of destruction came closer than what most people realised.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," notes Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans using the naval blockade, there is no question Soviet forces stationed there would have launched a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have sunk our aircraft carriers as well as destroyed America's primary naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to exercise restraint and calmly negotiate when everyone in their governments was pushing for military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew American similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of hope.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Still, during those two weeks in October, the fear was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world shortly after the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis via the Soviet school curriculum, which painted a slightly different narrative of events.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, and it was a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was always wonderful and positive."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, because it was a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, and avoided the war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that perspective would not be shared by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a failure for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up America."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is so balanced and well produced that Khrushcheva jokes it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most momentous aspect remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable that relatives of the heads of state of America and the USSR to appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a sign of hope.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, my uncle moved to America and became great friends with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Max. "Which is unfortunate since we got along immediately and now we’re friends, which is really great. Ultimately, after nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages have become friends, so I think the world is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Echoes and Current Dangers

Or is it? One reason the reason this series seems so urgent is because we once again are living living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to be able to grasp