🔗 Share this article Following almost annihilating our world, our families are allies’: the thrilling audio series featuring John F. Kennedy & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives. In the month of October 1962, humanity edged nearer toward ruin than at any other point in recent history. This transpired following the discovery that a US surveillance aircraft identified that Soviet atomic weapon sites were under construction on Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, President JFK ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a maritime blockade around Cuba. The ensuing period constituted nearly a fortnight of extreme anxiety. The Unthinkable Danger The peril remained palpable. Should President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a cascade of global nuclear strikes followed by counterstrikes would have ensued, plunging civilization into total destruction. This pivotal 1962 event has been documented endlessly, through books, movies, and TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a novel dimension to the story. It is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, family members belonging to the leaders who, for two tense weeks, held the destiny of the planet in their hands. "What was the Soviet side planning? What was the United States considering?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor specializing in international affairs. For her, the beauty of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do people hate one another and oppose one another?" "I am acutely aware how profound the fact that humans have the potential to be allies or can become total adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and currently a writer and attorney. "We see this dynamic repeatedly when nations enter into conflict, highlighting the sheer folly it is to fight." A Brink Towards Catastrophe What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it transpired so publicly, individuals around the world were able to observe nearly in real time while it crept towards armageddon. However, the risk of destruction was more imminent than anybody realised. "The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for a military strike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've obliterated our aircraft carriers and sunk America's primary fleet. And, the U.S. would have responded with massive retaliation which would have ended all life on the planet." The fact it didn’t is a testament to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to keep their heads and calmly negotiate at a time when everyone in their governments demanded military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed American missiles from Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of optimism. The Different Perspective Yet, for those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, and Nina learned about it through the USSR's school curriculum, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened. "As you mentioned your parent recalls it, and it was a scary time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know a great deal about it, since it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system the official line was that things are constantly wonderful and sunny." Inside the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, as it was a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, and avoided the war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, however, that view would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up the United States." An Unlikely Collaboration The Bomb is so even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known outcome. This is, in part, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the heads of state of America and USSR to appear together publicly. That these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of optimism. "Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "But we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate since we connected really well and we’re friends, which is really great. Finally, after almost 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our families have become friends, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat." Contemporary Echoes and Current Perils Or is it? One reason the reason The Bomb seems so urgent is that we now find ourselves in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend
In the month of October 1962, humanity edged nearer toward ruin than at any other point in recent history. This transpired following the discovery that a US surveillance aircraft identified that Soviet atomic weapon sites were under construction on Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, President JFK ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a maritime blockade around Cuba. The ensuing period constituted nearly a fortnight of extreme anxiety. The Unthinkable Danger The peril remained palpable. Should President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a cascade of global nuclear strikes followed by counterstrikes would have ensued, plunging civilization into total destruction. This pivotal 1962 event has been documented endlessly, through books, movies, and TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a novel dimension to the story. It is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, family members belonging to the leaders who, for two tense weeks, held the destiny of the planet in their hands. "What was the Soviet side planning? What was the United States considering?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor specializing in international affairs. For her, the beauty of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do people hate one another and oppose one another?" "I am acutely aware how profound the fact that humans have the potential to be allies or can become total adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and currently a writer and attorney. "We see this dynamic repeatedly when nations enter into conflict, highlighting the sheer folly it is to fight." A Brink Towards Catastrophe What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it transpired so publicly, individuals around the world were able to observe nearly in real time while it crept towards armageddon. However, the risk of destruction was more imminent than anybody realised. "The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for a military strike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've obliterated our aircraft carriers and sunk America's primary fleet. And, the U.S. would have responded with massive retaliation which would have ended all life on the planet." The fact it didn’t is a testament to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to keep their heads and calmly negotiate at a time when everyone in their governments demanded military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed American missiles from Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of optimism. The Different Perspective Yet, for those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, and Nina learned about it through the USSR's school curriculum, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened. "As you mentioned your parent recalls it, and it was a scary time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know a great deal about it, since it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system the official line was that things are constantly wonderful and sunny." Inside the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, as it was a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, and avoided the war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, however, that view would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up the United States." An Unlikely Collaboration The Bomb is so even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known outcome. This is, in part, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the heads of state of America and USSR to appear together publicly. That these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of optimism. "Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "But we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate since we connected really well and we’re friends, which is really great. Finally, after almost 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our families have become friends, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat." Contemporary Echoes and Current Perils Or is it? One reason the reason The Bomb seems so urgent is that we now find ourselves in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend