‘After nearly destroying the world, the relatives are friends’: a gripping podcast featuring JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, humanity came nearer to annihilation more so than ever in the contemporary era. This happened when an American surveillance plane found the fact that Soviet atomic missile sites were being built on Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from American soil. Reacting to this, President JFK commanded a naval task force to enact a naval blockade encircling Cuba. What followed was almost 14 days filled with impossible tension.

The Unthinkable Threat

The threat remained clear. Should Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired on the other side, a chain reaction involving global nuclear strikes followed by retaliatory strikes might have ensued, thrusting humanity into total ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered repeatedly, through books, films, and television programmes. However, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" introduces a completely new dimension into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives belonging to the leaders that, for two tense weeks, grasped the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What were the Kremlin planning? What were the United States planning?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also an academic of international affairs.

For her, the strength of the podcast lies in its endeavor to question: "Why do nations detest each other to the point they oppose each other?"

"I am acutely aware how spectacular the fact that humans can be friends or have the potential to be total enemies," states Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and now an author and attorney. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where countries have gone to war, highlighting the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."

A Precipice of Catastrophe

What’s remarkable about this event is that, since it unfolded so publicly, citizens around the world could watch nearly in real time while it moved closer to catastrophe. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than most people realised.

"Almost all officials in the White House were advocating for an airstrike and a ground invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain Soviet forces stationed there would've launched a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, which would've obliterated our naval vessels as well as sunk our largest and most important naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended all life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone around them were advocating military action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles from Cuba and President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed American missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by the sense of optimism.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Still, for those two weeks in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters came into the world in the years following these events, and Khrushcheva being taught about it through the USSR's education system, which painted an alternative narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary time," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that things are constantly wonderful or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, it was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start a global war, which was a wonderful outcome," she continues. Later on, though, that perspective would not be shared by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a failure for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying America."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

The Bomb is so even-handed and well produced that Khrushcheva jokes she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, partly, due to the participation of historians. Yet, truly, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable for descendants of the leaders of the United States and USSR would appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a sign of optimism.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, my uncle moved to America where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Max. "Which is a shame since we got along immediately and now we’re friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, after nearly six decades of almost destroying the world, our families are now friends, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes with Present Perils

Or is it? One reason why this series seems so urgent is because we now are living in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to grasp