‘After nearly annihilating the planet, our families are allies’: a gripping audio series featuring JFK & Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, the planet veered nearer to ruin more so than ever in modern times. This transpired when an American reconnaissance plane identified the fact that Soviet atomic weapon installations were being built on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a naval blockade around Cuba. The ensuing period was almost a fortnight filled with extreme stress.

An Catastrophic Danger

The danger remained clear. If President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a series involving worldwide atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes could have followed, plunging civilization toward all-out ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered endlessly, through volumes, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents an unprecedented element to this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the leaders who, for two tense weeks, controlled the destiny of the world in their hands.

"What was the Kremlin planning? What were the United States considering?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also an academic of global relations.

For her, the unique appeal of the podcast is its endeavor to question: "How can people detest one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that individuals have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be complete adversaries," remarks Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and now an author as well as attorney. "History shows this dynamic over and over when nations have gone to war, and it just illustrates how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."

The Precipice Towards Disaster

What is striking regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired so publicly, individuals around the world were able to observe nearly in real time as it crept closer to disaster. However, the risk of destruction came closer than most people understood at the time.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for a military strike and a ground invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, it is certain Soviet forces on the ground would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, which would've sunk the aircraft carriers as well as sunk America's primary naval force. In turn, we would have retaliated through massive retaliation that would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in keep their heads and calmly negotiate at a time when many advisors in their governments were advocating military action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, as was the sense of hope.

A Divergent Perspective

Yet, during those two weeks of October 1962, the tension was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world shortly after the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis via the Soviet education system, which portrayed a slightly different picture of events.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, whereas in the Soviet Union we were told that things are constantly wonderful and sunny."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, it was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, because it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, and didn’t start a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that view would not be held by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a failure for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying America."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

The Bomb is so balanced , well produced so much so that Khrushcheva jokes she nearly forgot the known the ending. This effect is, partly, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. But, truly, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable for relatives of the heads of state of America and the USSR to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a sign of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," notes Nina. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative moved to America and became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is unfortunate since we connected really well and now we’re friends, which is really great. Finally, after nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the world, our lineages have become friends, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes and Present Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of why this series seems so urgent is that we once again find ourselves in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe in its history, partly since world leaders appear not to have the capacity to comprehend