Following almost annihilating our world, the families are allies’: the gripping podcast featuring JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, the planet came nearer toward ruin more so than ever during modern times. This occurred after a US reconnaissance aircraft identified the fact that Russian atomic weapon installations were under construction on the island of Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK ordered a naval task force to enact a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period was nearly a fortnight filled with impossible anxiety.

An Catastrophic Danger

The threat was obvious. If President Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on their enemy, a chain reaction involving worldwide nuclear strikes followed by retaliatory strikes might have followed, thrusting civilization into all-out oblivion.

The October crisis has been documented extensively, in volumes, films, as well as TV documentaries. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" introduces a novel element to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the leaders who, for two tense weeks, grasped the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Russians thinking? What were Washington considering?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also an academic specializing in global relations.

In her view, the beauty of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can people hate each other and oppose each other?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that humans can be allies or have the potential to be complete enemies," remarks Max Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now a writer as well as lawyer. "History shows this dynamic over and over when countries enter into conflict, and it just illustrates how unbelievably stupid it is to fight."

The Precipice of Disaster

What’s notable about this event is that, since it transpired so publicly, people around the world could watch nearly as it happened while it edged closer to disaster. However, the threat of annihilation was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike and a ground invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba using the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians stationed there would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would have sunk the naval vessels as well as sunk our primary fleet. In turn, we would have responded through massive retaliation which would have ended most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in exercise restraint while calmly negotiate at a time when everyone around them demanded military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed American missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, as was a feeling of hope.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Still, for those two weeks in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born in the years following these events, and Khrushcheva being taught about it via the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed an alternative version of events.

"You said your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "However in the Soviet Union, the public were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always wonderful and positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, because it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, and didn’t start a global war, which was a wonderful outcome," she continues. In the years to come, however, that interpretation would not be held by all Russians. "For decades in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably balanced and expertly crafted so much so that Khrushcheva jokes she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This is, in part, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most momentous thing is the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable that relatives of the leaders of America and the Soviet Union would appear side by side. That these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of hope.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is a shame since we connected immediately and now we are friends, which is really great. Ultimately, following almost six decades of nearly annihilating the world, our lineages are now friends, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Echoes and Current Dangers

Or is it? One reason why this series seems so urgent is that we once again are living in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to learn