Following almost destroying the planet, the families are allies’: a gripping audio series from JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, the world came nearer toward destruction than at any other point in modern times. This happened following the discovery that an American reconnaissance aircraft discovered the fact that Russian atomic missile installations were under construction on the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles from the US mainland. In response, President JFK ordered a naval task force to enact a naval blockade encircling Cuba. The ensuing period constituted almost a fortnight filled with impossible stress.

An Catastrophic Threat

The danger remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a series involving worldwide atomic strikes followed by retaliatory strikes would have followed, casting mankind into all-out ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented repeatedly, in volumes, movies, as well as television programmes. But, for its third season, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents a completely new perspective to the story. It is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the men who, over 13 days, held the destiny of the planet within their grasp.

"What were the Russians considering? What was the American side planning?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor specializing in international affairs.

In her view, the beauty of the podcast lies in its endeavor to explore: "How can people hate each other to the point they oppose one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound it is that people can be friends or else can become total enemies," adds Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of JFK and now a writer as well as attorney. "We see this over and over when nations have gone to war, highlighting the sheer folly involved to fight."

The Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, citizens around the world were able to observe almost as it happened as it edged closer to disaster. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation was more imminent than anybody realised.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces stationed there would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've sunk the aircraft carriers as well as destroyed America's primary naval force. And, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to remain calm while engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone in their governments demanded military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his missiles based in Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of optimism.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, for those two weeks of October 1962, the anxiety was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world in the years following these events, with Nina learned about the crisis via the Soviet education system, which portrayed a slightly different narrative of events.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, describing it as a frightening time," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know a great deal about it, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly fine and positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, it was distinct. "They told me what a great moment for the USSR, as it was a direct confrontation. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start the war, seen as a positive thing," she adds. In the years to come, however, that view was not held by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a setback for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying America."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is so balanced , expertly crafted so much so that Nina jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most groundbreaking aspect is the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable that descendants of the heads of state of America and Soviet Union would appear side by side. That these two individuals are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"We are not the first," notes Nina. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Max. "That is a shame since we connected immediately and now we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the world, our lineages are now allies, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Echoes and Present Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is because we once again find ourselves living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight than ever before, in part because world leaders appear not to be able to learn