Paul’s Perilous Prognostications

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Okay, I know TV weather guys are infatuated with their super dooper Doppler X thousand radar, but why do they feel compelled to not only show the local radar when there is absolutely no precipitation for hundreds of miles, but they also feel it is important to show the animated version with the little computer generated sweep going around of nothingness. Tonight was one of those rare instances (very rare) where I happened to be in the same room when the local news was on, and it was the weather segment. So being as there is nothing of note in our forecast that the current radar can see I think the closest weather coming our way is in the neighborhood of Iowa, but this guy felt compelled to point out that there was nothing on the radar over each and every county in the area, when a quick hey look its clear and nothing to worry about until Saturday night, back to you Jane would have sufficed, or at least going to a national map to discuss the potential for Saturday night. It was one of those instances that he was trying real hard to make something of nothing…
So what I am wondering is… Are the viewers that cynical, that they have to be shown not only nothing, but animated nothingness, or do the TV stations have to justify the cost of the “radar” so they feel compelled to use it… 
PS Have you ever noticed that when the local NWS radar goes down, many TV stations radars also have problems….

Apologies to the few TV meteorologists that actually know what they are talking about…