Following nearly destroying our planet, our relatives are friends’: a gripping podcast featuring John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, the planet came nearer toward destruction more so than ever in the contemporary era. This transpired after an American reconnaissance plane discovered that Soviet atomic missile sites were being built on the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from American soil. Reacting to this, President JFK ordered a naval task force to establish a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period was almost two weeks of unbearable tension.

The Unthinkable Danger

The peril remained palpable. If Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a chain reaction of global atomic strikes followed by counterstrikes could have followed, plunging civilization toward all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been examined extensively, through books, movies, and TV documentaries. But, for its third season, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" introduces a novel element into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the men that, over 13 days, held the fate of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Russians planning? What was the United States planning?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter and a professor of international affairs.

For her, the strength of the show lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can individuals detest one another and confront each other?"

"It struck me how remarkable the fact that individuals can be friends or else can become complete enemies," adds Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of the late president and currently an author and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where countries have gone to war, demonstrating the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired so publicly, people globally were able to observe almost as it happened while it moved closer to disaster. Nonetheless, the threat of destruction was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and an invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck the Cubans using the naval blockade, there is no question the Russians on the ground would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have destroyed our aircraft carriers as well as sunk America's primary fleet. In turn, we would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, they succeeded in exercise restraint and engaging in diplomacy when everyone in their governments was pushing for action. Consequently, The Soviet premier removed the missiles in Cuba and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew his similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, as was the sense of optimism.

A Different Perspective

Still, during those 13 days in October, the tension was palpable globally. The podcast's co-hosts were born in the years following these events, and Khrushcheva learned about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which painted an alternative picture of what happened.

"You said your father remembers it, and it was a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "I was informed what a great occasion it was, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus didn’t start the war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that view would not be held by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a setback for Khrushchev, simply he refrained from destroying the United States."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , expertly crafted so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, due to contributions from renowned scholars. But, truly, the most groundbreaking aspect remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable that descendants of the leaders of America and the USSR to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"We are not the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "That is a shame because we connected really well and now we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years since nearly annihilating the world, our families are now allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels and Present Perils

Or is it? One reason why this series seems so urgent is because we once again are living living through dark times. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to be able to grasp