(Adds dropped letter in lead paragraph to read "issues" instead
of "issue")
LOS ANGELES, Dec 20 (Reuters) - The World Music Awards was
postponed on Thursday due to "logistical and multiple visa
issues," organizers said, two days before the event was
scheduled to be held in Miami.
Event producers John Martinotti and Marcol International
said in a statement that the Dec. 22 awards ceremony also was
being delayed in the wake of the elementary school shooting in
Newtown, Connecticut, last week.
"We are sorry for any inconvenience but this decision had to
be made due to logistical and multiple visa issues and in view
of this week's national mourning. Fans have been a great support
to the artists and have voted online in huge numbers," the
producers said in a statement.
The winners in categories ranging from world's best song,
world's best artists and entertainer of the year, are picked by
fans who vote online. The statement said that votes will
continue to be collected until a new date is set for the show.
This year's nominees include Usher, Justin Bieber, Nicki
Minaj, Rihanna and Chris Brown. Past winners include Whitney
Houston, Mariah Carey and Michael Jackson.
The awards ceremony, founded in 1989 and hosted by Monaco's
Prince Albert II, has primarily taken place in Monte Carlo and
proceeds from the show go to charity. This year, show producers
decided to move it to Marlins Park Stadium in Miami.
(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy, editing by Eric Kelsey)