Following nearly annihilating our planet, our families are friends’: a gripping podcast featuring JFK and Khrushchev’s descendants.

In the month of October 1962, the world came closer to annihilation more so than ever in recent history. This occurred when a US surveillance aircraft found that Russian atomic weapon sites were under construction on the island of Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the US mainland. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a maritime quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period was nearly 14 days of extreme stress.

An Catastrophic Threat

The danger was obvious. If President Kennedy, or else the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack on the other side, a chain reaction of worldwide atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes would have ensued, plunging civilization toward all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered repeatedly, through volumes, films, and television programmes. However, for its third season, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents a novel perspective to the story. The series is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures who, over two tense weeks, controlled the fate of humanity in their hands.

"What was the Soviet side considering? What were the United States planning?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also a professor specializing in international affairs.

In her view, the beauty of the show lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can individuals detest one another to the point they oppose one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound it is that people can be allies or else have the potential to be complete enemies," states Kennedy, the son of RFK, nephew of JFK and now a writer and attorney. "We see this repeatedly when countries enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to engage in warfare."

A Brink of Catastrophe

What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens around the world could watch nearly in real time as it crept closer to disaster. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than most people realised.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," notes Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question the Russians stationed there would've deployed a nuclear warhead at the American ships, which would have destroyed the naval vessels as well as destroyed our largest and most important naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated all life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, who succeeded in keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone around them was pushing for military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in Cuba while Kennedy (although not reported then) removed his missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, as was a feeling of hope.

A Different Perspective

Still, for those 13 days in October, the fear was felt by everyone. The podcast's presenters came into the world in the years following these events, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the Soviet school curriculum, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, whereas under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, because it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, and avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful thing," she adds. Later on, however, that view was not held by all Russians. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is so balanced , expertly crafted that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known the ending. This is, in part, due to the participation of historians. Yet, truly, the most significant thing remains the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable for relatives of the heads of state of the United States and USSR to appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of optimism.

"We are not the first," smiles Nina. "After 1991, a relative moved to America where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we connected really well and we’re friends, which is really great. Finally, following nearly six decades since almost destroying the world, our families are now friends, suggesting the world is safer, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes with Current Perils

Or is it? Part of why this series feels so necessary is because we once again are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders don’t seem to be able to learn