‘After nearly annihilating our world, the families have become allies’: the thrilling podcast featuring John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, humanity veered closer toward annihilation than at any other point during the contemporary era. This transpired after an American surveillance plane identified that Soviet atomic missile installations were being built in the island of Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a maritime blockade encircling the island. The next phase was almost two weeks of extreme stress.

An Catastrophic Danger

The peril remained obvious. Should Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a chain reaction of worldwide nuclear strikes and retaliatory strikes would have followed, plunging humanity toward total oblivion.

The October crisis has been covered endlessly, through volumes, films, and TV documentaries. But, for its third season, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" has brought a novel element to this historical narrative. It is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures that, over two tense weeks, controlled the fate of the planet within their grasp.

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

In her view, the beauty of the show lies in its attempt to question: "Why do nations hate one another and go against each other?"

"It was not lost on me how profound it is that people can be allies or else can become total adversaries," remarks Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and currently a writer and lawyer. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where countries enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality involved to fight."

A Brink of Catastrophe

What is notable about the Cuban missile crisis was that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, individuals globally were able to observe nearly as it happened as it edged closer to armageddon. Even so, the risk of destruction came closer than most people understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike and an invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would've deployed a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've sunk the aircraft carriers and destroyed our largest and most important naval force. In turn, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended most life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, they succeeded in remain calm and calmly negotiate at a time when everyone in their governments demanded military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed American missiles from Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was a feeling of hope.

The Different Viewpoint

Still, for those two weeks of October 1962, the anxiety was felt by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis via the Soviet school curriculum, which painted a slightly different picture of events.

"As you mentioned your father remembers it, describing it as a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "However in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware that much about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas under the Soviet system we were told that everything was constantly fine or sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "I was informed what a great moment it was, because it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful thing," she continues. Later on, though, that view would not be shared by all Russians. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a failure for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up America."

A Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is remarkably balanced , well produced so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most momentous thing is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable for descendants of the leaders of the United States and the USSR to appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a symbol of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we had never met before the podcast," adds Max. "That is unfortunate because we connected immediately and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following almost 60 years since almost destroying the planet, our lineages are now friends, so I think the world is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Parallels with Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is because we once again find ourselves living through dark times. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight than ever before, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to comprehend