‘After nearly destroying our world, the families have become friends’: a gripping podcast featuring John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s descendants.

During October 1962, the planet edged nearer to annihilation than at any other point during modern times. This happened following the discovery that an American reconnaissance aircraft discovered that Russian atomic weapon installations were under construction in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from the United States. Reacting to this, President JFK ordered a naval task force to impose a maritime quarantine encircling the island. The next phase constituted nearly 14 days of impossible stress.

The Catastrophic Danger

The threat was obvious. If Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired against their enemy, a chain reaction of global atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes might have ensued, thrusting civilization toward all-out destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered endlessly, through volumes, films, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series The Bomb introduces a novel perspective into this historical narrative. The series is co-presented by Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the figures that, over two tense weeks, grasped the destiny of humanity in their hands.

"What were the Kremlin thinking? What was Washington planning?" asks Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also an academic of global relations.

For her, the unique appeal of the podcast lies in its attempt to question: "How can people hate one another and go against each other?"

"It was not lost on me how profound it is that individuals can be allies or have the potential to be complete adversaries," states Kennedy, the son of RFK, nephew of JFK and currently an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly when countries have gone to war, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

A Precipice Towards Disaster

What is striking about the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, citizens worldwide could watch almost in real time while it moved closer to disaster. Even so, the threat of annihilation came closer than what most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and an invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain the Russians on the ground would've launched a nuclear warhead against the American ships, and that would have obliterated our aircraft carriers as well as sunk our primary naval force. And, we would have retaliated through massive retaliation which would have ended most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t stands as credit to both leaders, they managed to keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone in their governments were advocating military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed his missiles from Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was a feeling of hope.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Still, during those two weeks of October 1962, the tension was felt by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, with Khrushcheva being taught about it through the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, describing it as a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly wonderful and sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "I was informed what a great occasion it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, thus avoided the war, seen as a positive thing," she continues. Later on, however, that interpretation was not held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed and well produced that Nina jokes she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This is, in part, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most momentous thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable for descendants 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 exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we had never met before the podcast," adds Max. "Which is a shame since we got along really well and we are friends, something that is really great. Finally, after nearly 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our families have become friends, suggesting the world is safer, a little bit."

Modern Parallels with Present Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of why The Bomb feels so necessary is because we now find ourselves living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight than ever before, partly since today's statesmen don’t seem to have the capacity to learn