🔗 Share this article ‘After almost annihilating the world, the families have become friends’: the gripping podcast featuring John F. Kennedy & Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants. During October 1962, humanity came closer toward annihilation than at any other point during modern times. This occurred after a US reconnaissance plane found that Soviet atomic weapon sites were under construction on Cuba, less than 100 miles from the United States. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a naval quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period was almost 14 days of extreme stress. The Catastrophic Danger The danger remained obvious. Should President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a cascade of worldwide atomic strikes followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, casting humanity into total destruction. This pivotal 1962 event has been covered repeatedly, in books, movies, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents a completely new dimension to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures that, over 13 days, grasped the fate of the planet in their hands. "What were the Kremlin thinking? What were Washington considering?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of global relations. For her, the strength of the podcast is its attempt to explore: "Why do individuals detest each other and go against one another?" "It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that individuals can be friends or else can become total enemies," states Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and currently a writer as well as attorney. "We see this over and over when countries enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to engage in warfare." A Precipice of Disaster What is remarkable regarding this event was that, because it unfolded so publicly, individuals worldwide were able to observe almost in real time as it moved towards armageddon. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time. "Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike and a ground invasion," says Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain Soviet forces on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, which would have sunk the naval vessels and destroyed America's primary naval force. And, we would have responded with massive retaliation that would have eradicated most life on the planet." The fact it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, they managed to exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy at a time when many advisors around them demanded action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in Cuba while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of hope. A Different Perspective Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, with Nina being taught about the crisis via the Soviet education system, which presented a slightly different narrative of what happened. "You said your parent remembers it, and it was a scary time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was always wonderful or sunny." Inside the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "They told me what a great moment for the USSR, because it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Subsequently, though, that perspective was not shared by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up the United States." A Unprecedented Partnership The Bomb is so balanced , expertly crafted so much so that Nina jokes it almost made her forget the known the ending. This effect is, partly, due to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most momentous thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and the USSR to appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, has to be a symbol of optimism. "We aren't the first," notes Nina. "Following 1991, a relative moved to America and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "However we had never met prior to this project," adds Max. "Which is a shame because we got along really well and now we’re friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years since almost destroying the world, our families have become allies, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit." Contemporary Echoes with Present Dangers Or is it? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is because we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to grasp
During October 1962, humanity came closer toward annihilation than at any other point during modern times. This occurred after a US reconnaissance plane found that Soviet atomic weapon sites were under construction on Cuba, less than 100 miles from the United States. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a naval quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period was almost 14 days of extreme stress. The Catastrophic Danger The danger remained obvious. Should President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a cascade of worldwide atomic strikes followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, casting humanity into total destruction. This pivotal 1962 event has been covered repeatedly, in books, movies, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents a completely new dimension to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures that, over 13 days, grasped the fate of the planet in their hands. "What were the Kremlin thinking? What were Washington considering?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of global relations. For her, the strength of the podcast is its attempt to explore: "Why do individuals detest each other and go against one another?" "It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that individuals can be friends or else can become total enemies," states Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and currently a writer as well as attorney. "We see this over and over when countries enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to engage in warfare." A Precipice of Disaster What is remarkable regarding this event was that, because it unfolded so publicly, individuals worldwide were able to observe almost in real time as it moved towards armageddon. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time. "Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike and a ground invasion," says Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain Soviet forces on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, which would have sunk the naval vessels and destroyed America's primary naval force. And, we would have responded with massive retaliation that would have eradicated most life on the planet." The fact it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, they managed to exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy at a time when many advisors around them demanded action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in Cuba while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of hope. A Different Perspective Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, with Nina being taught about the crisis via the Soviet education system, which presented a slightly different narrative of what happened. "You said your parent remembers it, and it was a scary time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was always wonderful or sunny." Inside the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "They told me what a great moment for the USSR, because it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Subsequently, though, that perspective was not shared by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up the United States." A Unprecedented Partnership The Bomb is so balanced , expertly crafted so much so that Nina jokes it almost made her forget the known the ending. This effect is, partly, due to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most momentous thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and the USSR to appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, has to be a symbol of optimism. "We aren't the first," notes Nina. "Following 1991, a relative moved to America and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "However we had never met prior to this project," adds Max. "Which is a shame because we got along really well and now we’re friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years since almost destroying the world, our families have become allies, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit." Contemporary Echoes with Present Dangers Or is it? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is because we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to grasp