Following nearly destroying the planet, our families are friends’: the thrilling podcast from JFK & Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, humanity came closer to annihilation more so than ever in the contemporary era. This happened when a US reconnaissance plane identified that Russian atomic missile sites were under construction on the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period was nearly two weeks filled with impossible anxiety.

An Catastrophic Threat

The danger was obvious. Should Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against the other side, a chain reaction of global nuclear strikes followed by retaliatory strikes might have ensued, thrusting humanity into total oblivion.

The October crisis has been examined extensively, in books, movies, as well as TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a completely new dimension into the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the figures that, for two tense weeks, held the fate of the planet within their grasp.

"What was the Kremlin planning? What was the United States considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter who is also a professor specializing in international affairs.

For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to question: "Why do people hate one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It struck me how profound it is that individuals can be allies or else have the potential to be total adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and now an author and lawyer. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where countries enter into conflict, highlighting how unbelievably stupid involved to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Disaster

What’s remarkable regarding this event was that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals globally could watch nearly in real time as it moved towards disaster. Even so, the threat of annihilation was more imminent than anybody realised.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike followed by an invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans with the naval blockade, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would have fired a nuclear warhead at the American ships, and that would've obliterated the aircraft carriers as well as sunk America's largest and most important naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have retaliated through massive retaliation that would have ended all life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, they succeeded in exercise restraint and engaging in diplomacy when hawkish elements in their governments were advocating action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles from Cuba and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew American missiles from Turkey. The relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of optimism.

The Different Perspective

Still, during those two weeks of October 1962, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts were born in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about it through the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, describing it as a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "However 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 we were told that everything was constantly wonderful and sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, it was different. "I was informed what a great moment it was, because it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and didn’t start the war, which was a wonderful outcome," she continues. Subsequently, though, that interpretation was not shared by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up America."

An Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is so even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva jokes it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This is, partly, thanks to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most significant thing is the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the heads of state of America and Soviet Union to appear side by side. That these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a symbol of hope.

"Max and I are not the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," adds Max. "Which is a shame since we got along really well and now we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, after nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages are now friends, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes with Current Perils

Or is it? Part of the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is that we once again are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to catastrophe in its history, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend