‘After nearly annihilating our planet, our relatives are allies’: a gripping audio series featuring JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During October 1962, humanity came closer toward annihilation more so than ever in recent history. This occurred when a US surveillance aircraft identified the fact that Soviet atomic missile sites were under construction on the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from American soil. In response, U.S. President JFK directed a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine around the island. The next phase was almost two weeks of unbearable stress.

An Catastrophic Threat

The threat remained palpable. If Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a chain reaction involving worldwide nuclear strikes followed by counterstrikes might have followed, plunging humanity toward total ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered endlessly, in volumes, films, and television programmes. However, for its third season, the audio documentary series The Bomb introduces an unprecedented element into this historical narrative. It is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the men who, over 13 days, controlled the fate of the world in their hands.

"What were the Soviet side planning? What were the United States thinking?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also a professor of international affairs.

For her, the unique appeal of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do people detest one another to the point they confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that individuals can be friends or can become total adversaries," adds Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to the late president and now a writer as well as attorney. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where countries enter into conflict, and it just illustrates how unbelievably stupid it is to engage in warfare."

A Precipice of Catastrophe

What’s notable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it unfolded so publicly, citizens globally could watch nearly as it happened while it moved towards disaster. Nonetheless, the risk of annihilation came closer than most people realised.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted a military strike and a ground invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain Soviet forces on the ground would've launched a nuclear warhead against the American ships, and that would've sunk our aircraft carriers and destroyed America's primary fleet. And, the U.S. would have retaliated through massive retaliation that would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact it didn’t is a testament to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy when many advisors around them was pushing for military action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons from Cuba while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew his similar weapons based in Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by a feeling of optimism.

A Divergent Perspective

Still, during those two weeks in October, the fear was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world shortly after the crisis, with Khrushcheva being taught about it through the USSR's school curriculum, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always fine and sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, however, it was different. "They told me what a great moment it was, because it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and avoided a global war, which was a positive thing," she adds. In the years to come, however, that perspective was not shared by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up the United States."

A Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is so balanced and expertly crafted so much so that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. But, truly, the most momentous thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable for descendants of the leaders of America and USSR to appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a sign of optimism.

"Max and I are not the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, my uncle moved to America where he became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Max. "That is a shame because we got along really well and we are friends, which is really great. Finally, following nearly six decades since almost destroying the world, our families have become allies, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes with Current Perils

Or is it? Part of why The Bomb feels so necessary is because we once again are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight than ever before, in part because today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to comprehend