Following nearly annihilating the planet, our relatives are friends’: a gripping podcast from John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

In October 1962, humanity edged closer toward annihilation more so than ever during the contemporary era. This occurred after a US surveillance plane found the fact that Russian atomic weapon bases were being assembled in Cuba, less than 100 miles from American soil. Reacting to this, President JFK directed a naval task force to establish a maritime blockade around Cuba. What followed constituted almost a fortnight of extreme anxiety.

The Catastrophic Danger

The peril remained clear. If President Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired against the other side, a chain reaction involving global nuclear strikes followed by retaliatory strikes could have ensued, casting mankind into total oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered endlessly, in volumes, films, and TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series The Bomb introduces a novel dimension into this historical narrative. It is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, relatives of the leaders that, over 13 days, grasped the fate of humanity in their hands.

"What were the Soviet side considering? What was Washington considering?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter who is also a professor specializing in international affairs.

For her, the strength of the show lies in its endeavor to question: "Why do individuals detest one another to the point they go against each other?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular the fact that people have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be complete enemies," states Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and currently an author as well as attorney. "We see this over and over when countries have gone to war, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink of Disaster

What is striking regarding this event was that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, people worldwide were able to observe nearly as it happened as it edged towards armageddon. Even so, the threat of destruction came closer than most people realised.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," says Max Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans using the Sixth Fleet, it is certain the Russians stationed there would have deployed a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, which would have obliterated our aircraft carriers and sunk America's primary naval force. In turn, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation that would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm and calmly negotiate when hawkish elements in their governments demanded military action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed his similar weapons based in Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was the sense of hope.

The Different Perspective

Yet, for those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was felt by everyone. The podcast's presenters came into the world in the years following these events, and Nina being taught about the crisis via the Soviet school curriculum, which presented a slightly different picture of what happened.

"You said your parent remembers it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, the public were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was constantly fine and sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, as it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start the war, seen as a positive thing," she continues. In the years to come, though, that perspective would not be shared by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a failure for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably balanced and well produced so much so that Nina jokes she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from historians. But, really, the most groundbreaking thing is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was unthinkable for relatives of the heads of state of the United States and USSR to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a symbol of hope.

"Max and I are not the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative moved to America where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is unfortunate since we connected immediately and now we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, after nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the world, our families have become allies, so I think global relations is safer, a little bit."

Contemporary Parallels with Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? Part of why this series feels so necessary is because we now find ourselves in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because world leaders don’t seem to be able to comprehend