🔗 Share this article Following nearly destroying the planet, our families are friends’: the gripping podcast featuring JFK & Khrushchev’s descendants. During the month of October 1962, the world veered nearer to ruin than at any other point during recent history. This happened when an American reconnaissance plane identified that Soviet atomic weapon bases were being built in Cuba, a mere 100 miles from American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a naval blockade around the island. The ensuing period constituted almost 14 days filled with extreme tension. An Unthinkable Threat The peril was palpable. Should Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a series of worldwide nuclear attacks and retaliatory strikes might have followed, thrusting mankind into total ruination. The Cuban missile crisis has been documented endlessly, in books, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a completely new element into this historical narrative. It is co-presented by Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders who, over 13 days, grasped the destiny of the planet in their hands. "What were the Soviet side thinking? What were the American side considering?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter who is also a professor of international affairs. In her view, the strength of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can nations detest one another and go against one another?" "I am acutely aware how spectacular it is that people have the potential to be allies or else have the potential to be total adversaries," adds Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now an author and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly when countries have gone to war, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to fight." The Brink Towards Disaster What’s notable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded so publicly, citizens worldwide could watch nearly in real time as it crept closer to armageddon. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than what anybody realised. "The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted a military strike and a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would have fired a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've sunk the aircraft carriers as well as destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. In turn, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated most life on the planet." The reality it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to exercise restraint and calmly negotiate at a time when everyone around them demanded action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles from Cuba while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed his similar weapons from Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, matched by the sense of optimism. A Different Viewpoint Yet, during those two weeks in October, the fear was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born shortly after the crisis, with Nina learned about the crisis through the Soviet school curriculum, which presented a slightly different narrative of events. "You said your father remembers it, describing it as a frightening time," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always fine or positive." Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment it was, because it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful thing," she continues. Subsequently, however, that interpretation would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up America." A Unlikely Collaboration This podcast is remarkably balanced , well produced so much so that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known outcome. This effect is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant aspect is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable for relatives of the leaders of America and USSR would appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a sign of optimism. "Max and I are not the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "However we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate because we connected really well and now we are friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, following nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the world, our lineages are now allies, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat." Modern Echoes and Current Dangers Is that truly the case? Part of the reason this series seems so urgent is because we once again find ourselves in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to learn
During the month of October 1962, the world veered nearer to ruin than at any other point during recent history. This happened when an American reconnaissance plane identified that Soviet atomic weapon bases were being built in Cuba, a mere 100 miles from American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a naval blockade around the island. The ensuing period constituted almost 14 days filled with extreme tension. An Unthinkable Threat The peril was palpable. Should Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a series of worldwide nuclear attacks and retaliatory strikes might have followed, thrusting mankind into total ruination. The Cuban missile crisis has been documented endlessly, in books, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a completely new element into this historical narrative. It is co-presented by Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders who, over 13 days, grasped the destiny of the planet in their hands. "What were the Soviet side thinking? What were the American side considering?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter who is also a professor of international affairs. In her view, the strength of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can nations detest one another and go against one another?" "I am acutely aware how spectacular it is that people have the potential to be allies or else have the potential to be total adversaries," adds Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now an author and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly when countries have gone to war, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to fight." The Brink Towards Disaster What’s notable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded so publicly, citizens worldwide could watch nearly in real time as it crept closer to armageddon. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than what anybody realised. "The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted a military strike and a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would have fired a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've sunk the aircraft carriers as well as destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. In turn, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated most life on the planet." The reality it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to exercise restraint and calmly negotiate at a time when everyone around them demanded action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles from Cuba while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed his similar weapons from Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, matched by the sense of optimism. A Different Viewpoint Yet, during those two weeks in October, the fear was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born shortly after the crisis, with Nina learned about the crisis through the Soviet school curriculum, which presented a slightly different narrative of events. "You said your father remembers it, describing it as a frightening time," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always fine or positive." Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment it was, because it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful thing," she continues. Subsequently, however, that interpretation would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up America." A Unlikely Collaboration This podcast is remarkably balanced , well produced so much so that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known outcome. This effect is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant aspect is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable for relatives of the leaders of America and USSR would appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a sign of optimism. "Max and I are not the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "However we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate because we connected really well and now we are friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, following nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the world, our lineages are now allies, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat." Modern Echoes and Current Dangers Is that truly the case? Part of the reason this series seems so urgent is because we once again find ourselves in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to learn