‘After nearly annihilating our world, our families have become friends’: a thrilling podcast from John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s descendants.
In the month of October 1962, the world edged nearer to destruction more so than ever during the contemporary era. This transpired when an American surveillance plane discovered the fact that Russian nuclear missile sites were being assembled in Cuba, a mere 100 miles from the United States. Reacting to this, President JFK ordered a naval task force to enact a naval quarantine around the island. The next phase was nearly 14 days filled with unbearable tension.
An Unthinkable Danger
The threat remained clear. Should President Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired against their enemy, a cascade involving global atomic strikes and retaliatory strikes might have followed, plunging mankind toward total ruination.
The Cuban missile crisis has been documented extensively, in books, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents a novel perspective to the story. It is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy alongside Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders who, over two tense weeks, controlled the destiny of the world within their grasp.
"What were the Kremlin thinking? What was the American side thinking?" ponders Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant and an academic specializing in global relations.
For her, the beauty of the podcast is its endeavor to question: "How can people hate each other and oppose one another?"
"I am acutely aware how spectacular it is that humans can be allies or have the potential to be total adversaries," states Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and currently an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this over and over in instances where nations enter into conflict, highlighting how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."
A Brink of Disaster
What is notable regarding this event is that, since it transpired so publicly, citizens globally were able to observe nearly as it happened as it moved towards catastrophe. However, the danger of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.
"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike and an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain the Russians stationed there would have fired a nuclear warhead against the American ships, and that would have destroyed our aircraft carriers as well as destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. And, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended most life on Earth."
The reality this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy when everyone around them were advocating action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was palpable, matched by a feeling of hope.
The Divergent Viewpoint
Still, during those 13 days in October, the fear was palpable globally. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following these events, with Khrushcheva being taught about it via the USSR's school curriculum, which painted a slightly different picture of what happened.
"You said your father recalls it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware a great deal about it, since it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system the official line was that things are always wonderful or sunny."
Inside the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment it was, because it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, though, that view would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a failure for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying the United States."
An Unlikely Collaboration
This podcast is remarkably even-handed , well produced so much so that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This effect is, in part, thanks to contributions from historians. Yet, truly, the most momentous aspect remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable that relatives of the leaders of America and the USSR would appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of optimism.
"We aren't the pioneers," smiles Nina. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with the former president's family."
"However we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is unfortunate because we got along immediately and now we’re friends, which is really great. Finally, after nearly six decades since almost destroying the world, our lineages have become allies, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."
Modern Echoes with Present Perils
Or is it? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is that we once again are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe in its history, partly since world leaders don’t seem to be able to comprehend