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

In October 1962, the world veered closer to destruction more so than ever during the contemporary era. This transpired following the discovery that an American surveillance aircraft discovered that Soviet nuclear missile installations were being assembled in Cuba, a mere 100 miles from American soil. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to establish a naval blockade encircling the island. The next phase was nearly a fortnight of unbearable anxiety.

The Unthinkable Danger

The threat remained palpable. Should Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a series involving global nuclear attacks and counterstrikes would have ensued, casting civilization toward total oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented endlessly, through books, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" presents a completely new dimension to this historical narrative. It is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the men who, for 13 days, grasped the fate of the planet in their hands.

"What were the Russians planning? What was the American side thinking?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also an academic specializing in international affairs.

In her view, the strength of the show lies in its attempt to question: "Why do nations hate one another to the point they go against each other?"

"It struck me how remarkable the fact that humans can be friends or else can become complete adversaries," adds Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and now a writer and lawyer. "We see this repeatedly when nations have gone to war, and it just illustrates how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."

The Precipice Towards Disaster

What is remarkable regarding this event is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, citizens worldwide could watch nearly as it happened while it crept towards armageddon. Even so, the threat of destruction was more imminent than what anybody realised.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba with the naval blockade, there is no question the Russians stationed there would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would've destroyed our aircraft carriers and destroyed America's primary naval force. In turn, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone around them demanded military action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island while President Kennedy (although not reported then) removed his similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was worldwide, as was a feeling of hope.

The Different Perspective

Yet, during those two weeks in October, the fear was felt globally. The podcast's presenters were born in the years following the crisis, with Nina learned about the crisis via the USSR's education system, which presented an alternative picture of events.

"You said your parent remembers it, and it was a scary day," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware a great deal about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was always fine or positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great occasion it was, as it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, seen as a positive thing," she continues. In the years to come, however, that perspective was not held by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a failure for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up America."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , expertly crafted that Nina jokes she nearly forgot the known outcome. This is, partly, thanks to contributions from historians. Yet, really, the most significant aspect remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable that relatives of the leaders of the United States and the Soviet Union would appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a symbol of progress.

"We are not the first," notes Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is unfortunate since we got along really well and we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our lineages are now allies, so I think the world is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Parallels with Present Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason why this series feels so necessary is that we now are living in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight than ever before, partly since today's statesmen don’t seem to have the capacity to grasp