Well, Spriggan, you are of course entitled to your opinion on that.
But by that standard, pretty much all of the media panels at LTUE are pathetic. I doubt anyone involved in producing the latest Harry Potter movie will be there for the Goblet of Fire panel. I don't think Joss Whedon or anyone who's worked on any of his shows will be on the Worlds of Joss Whedon panel.
Guess what? People can still enjoy going to those panels, for the same reasons they enjoy talking about movies and shows with their friends.
In my experience, the media panels like this get a lot more audience involvement than the writing panels -- because you're right, there are people in the audience who are just as qualified to be sitting on the panel as the panelists. So why aren't they on the panel? Because they didn't bother to get involved beforehand. I did bother, and in order to help out LTUE's organizers, I volunteered to be on media panels about things I happen to love watching, if they needed panelists.
So call it pathetic if you want. I just happen to think sci-fi fans getting together to discuss their favorite shows is a good thing, not a bad one.