Following almost annihilating our world, our families are friends’: a thrilling audio series featuring John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, humanity veered closer toward ruin more so than ever in modern times. This occurred after an American surveillance aircraft found that Russian nuclear missile installations were being assembled on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. In response, President JFK ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a naval quarantine encircling Cuba. The ensuing period constituted almost 14 days filled with impossible anxiety.

An Unthinkable Danger

The peril remained clear. If President Kennedy, or else the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a series involving worldwide nuclear strikes and retaliatory strikes could have ensued, plunging mankind into all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented extensively, in books, films, and television programmes. But, for its third season, the audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a novel dimension into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the figures that, for two tense weeks, held the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Russians considering? What was Washington thinking?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also a professor specializing in global relations.

In her view, the strength of the show lies in its endeavor to explore: "How can nations detest each other to the point they go against each other?"

"It struck me how profound the fact that individuals have the potential to be allies or have the potential to be complete enemies," states Max Kennedy, son of RFK, related to the late president and now an author as well as lawyer. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where nations enter into conflict, highlighting the sheer folly involved to engage in warfare."

The Precipice Towards Disaster

What’s remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens globally were able to observe almost as it happened as it crept towards catastrophe. However, the risk of annihilation came closer than anybody realised.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted a military strike followed by a ground invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba using the naval blockade, it is certain Soviet forces on the ground would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have destroyed the aircraft carriers and destroyed America's largest and most important naval force. And, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in exercise restraint and engaging in diplomacy when many advisors in their governments was pushing for military action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from Cuba while President Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew American similar weapons based in Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, matched by the sense of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Still, during those two weeks in October, the tension was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born in the years following the crisis, with Nina being taught about it via the USSR's school curriculum, which painted a slightly different version of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening time," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, the public really didn’t know that much regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that things are constantly fine and sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was distinct. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, because it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided the war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she continues. Subsequently, however, that interpretation would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a failure for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying America."

An Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is so even-handed and well produced so much so that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, partly, thanks to contributions from historians. Yet, really, the most significant thing remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable for descendants of the heads of state of the United States and Soviet Union to appear together publicly. That these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"We are not the first," notes Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Max. "Which is unfortunate because we got along really well and we are friends, something that is really great. Finally, following almost 60 years since almost destroying the planet, our lineages have become allies, suggesting global relations is safer, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes and Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of why this series feels so necessary is that we now are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to be able to learn