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After pondering what problems led to corporate America’s scandal boom, UCLA’s Michael Josephson thinks it’s ethics. And now he’s helping to plan a preemptive strike.

Josephson, a distinguished ethicist, will be a panelist on a groundbreaking new TV show called “Endgame” which will present hypothetical moral dilemmas in order to stimulate discussions on the types of moral choices we are forced to make in every day life. Although conceived prior to the discovery of corruption in American business and the Catholic Church, the show is especially applicable today when questions of what’s right and what’s wrong are on the forefront.

“Every once in a while on ‘L.A. Law’ or ‘Doogie Howser’, we’d run a ‘water-cooler’ episode, called so because people would talk about its heavy themes at the water-cooler the next day”, explains producer, writer, and director Scott Goldstein. “For this show, we wanted to move the water-cooler into the program and have that debate be the chief concern.”

The show’s unique format combines a short dramatic film, which sets up the hypothetical situation, a panel discussion in which special guests will lend a variety of opinions, and online interaction to see how people across the country would respond to such a situation. Think of it as an attempt to recreate a philosophy course discussion section on a national scale.

The most startling element of the show is the fact that it will air live in front of a studio audience. The producers will not be able to anticipate what direction the show will take because much of the discussion will be at the mercy of the audience. In addition, viewers at home can submit questions and comments via the Internet during the broadcast and steer the direction of the discussion.

Josephson, a UCLA law school alumni, agreed to be a panelist on the show because he believes people need motivation to think about ethics.

“People don’t seriously ponder right and wrong until it hits them in the face,” Josephson said. “The mere discussion of moral dilemmas improves the capacity to make choices.”

The purpose of this show is not to preach right and wrong, but to get people out of their comfort zones and confront the gray areas of morality. Viewers will be confronted with tough questions.

Although PBS is not known to attract an especially high number of young adult viewers, the creators of the show hope to be embraced by computer savvy college students.

“In discussing these issues, you get a chance to rehearse your life.” said Carol Marin, “Endgame’s” host and a former CBS News correspondent. “So while this show doesn’t seek to change anyone’s code of ethics, it has the potential to change what people will choose to do when faced with a difficult decision.”

“Endgame” premiers on Sept. 18 at 8:00 p.m. on local PBS station KCET.