• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, March 20, 2009

Pop culture media network Buzznet has changed its name to Buzz Media. The Los Angeles-based startup, which oversees popular blogs like the Superficial, Stereogum, and Idolator, has also raised a new round of financing worth some $12.5 million.

Existing investors--including Anthem Ventures, New Enterprise Associates, Redpoint Ventures and Sutter Hill Ventures--participated in the round, along with Palo Alto, Calif.-based Focus Ventures.

Each Buzz Media property is made up a professional editorial team, which encourages contributions from audiences. This approach is designed to cost-effectively program thousands of topics to drive large and engaged audiences across its branded properties. "In these challenging economic times, it's also extremely efficient," said Tyler Goldman, CEO of Buzz Media, referring to the company's business model.

The new funding will be used to expand Buzz Media's present network, which presently reaches roughly 40 million unique monthly users. Other sites in the Buzz Media network include Buzznet, Celebuzz, SocialiteLife, What Would Tyler Durden Do, Just Jared and Absolute Punk.

Less than a year ago, Buzz Media closed a round of financing in the neighborhood of $25 million. The company has used some of its capital to buy independent Web publisher like music Stereogum, which it acquired for a reported $5 million in stock.

Focus Ventures, Buzz Media's newest backer, specializes in privately held, expansion-stage technology companies. Other investments have included EqualLogic, acquired by Dell, Pure Digital, and Six Apart.