In December 1960, the Brookings Institution submitted a report to NASA, later delivered to Congress in April 1961, that specifically studied the societal implications of discovering extraterrestrial life and recommended studying whether and how such information should be shared with or withheld from the public.

The report, titled 'Proposed Studies on the Implications of Peaceful Space Activities for Human Affairs,' was commissioned by NASA. Its section on extraterrestrial discovery has been cited in discussions about government disclosure policy, noting that public reactions to confirmed contact could range from widespread indifference to social collapse depending on how the news was framed and communicated.