Two recent events in France highlight Al Jazeera’s transformation from being emergent champion of pan Arabic causes to major premium content provider across the world. Once decried in the US as a mouthpiece for Al Qaeda, it is now feared for its formidable financial backing by Qatar and aggressive global expansion through acquisition of sporting rights. The first event in France was Al Jazeera’s confirmation its sports channels will be named Be In Sport 1 and Be In Sport 2, and a call for bids from ad agencies to sell the ad space on these over the next three years. Plenty of interest is expected for these ‘prime assets’. The second event was Al Jazeera’s agreement on the request of…