What's the deal with the red AKG 414 on Conan's desk? He's always had some sort of mic on his desk but he frequently joked that it wasn't on or was just a prop.

I always assumed that since he and the guests are mic'd up with wireless lavs, the one of the desk was just for looks, but when he moved to TBS he started playing with it more (knocks it over or breaths heavily into it). Not only is it working, but it's apparent that it feeds into a gigantic reverb whenever he uses it.

Can anyone with a background in TV broadcasting fill me in?

EDIT1: The mic in question.

EDIT2: stepcut251 provided this link which explains that the theory I mentioned here is correct. So I assume the 414 is just a backup if the lavs go down. Thanks for doing the leg work stepcut!