It sounds quite believable. Having MMA legalized in NYC would be a huge announcement.
I hate to say it, but the first thing I thought of when I read this was "maybe 'EXC Primetime' looked worse than I thought on TV; maybe the commitee was shown highlights and was told: 'this is mma'". I have no evidence to back this up whatsoever, it is just a random thought.
And to those who might say the show was not all that bad, I agree (sorta)
. But, would it be the first thing you show someone new to the sport? Perhaps someone a little older?