There is no universal definition of what jazz is. Fisher noted that this lack of definition is another obstacle when acquainting people with jazz. If something can't be clearly articulated, this society is turned off to it. People always want me to 'define' jazz for them. For me, that's impossible.
Jazz means different things for different people.
Moreover, jazz is not an art that needs to be explained. There was too much emphasis placed on the 1920s and '30s, while little attention was paid to the developments that occurred in the late '60s with free jazz. Free jazz was considered black revolutionary music. It rejected all of the conventional aspects that had earlier defined jazz and it spoke to the level of unrest and disenchantment felt by the black people of this country. According to Fisher, the limited sources that Burns drew upon is also troubling.