Link field target not defaulting to "_blank" in Media entity references

@sonam
Tested Workaround – Two Options to Set target="_blank" for Media Link Fields
This can be handled cleanly without needing core changes. Here are two approaches we’ve tested:

1. Twig template override (for direct control):

href="{{ content.field_image_link.0['#url'] }}" target="_blank" rel="noopener">
{{ content.field_media }}

Useful when rendering the media reference manually in custom templates.

2. Theme-level preprocess hook (global):

function Theme_preprocess_field(array &$variables) {
if ($variables['element']['#field_name'] === 'field_image_link') {
foreach ($variables['items'] as &$item) {
if (!empty($item['#url']) && $item['#url']->isExternal()) {
$item['#options']['attributes']['target'] = '_blank';
$item['#options']['attributes']['rel'][] = 'noopener';
}
}
}
}
This makes all external links in that field open in a new tab site-wide.

 #3 working

Environment tested
- Drupal 11.2
- PHP 8.3
What I did
1. Reproduced the issue: external links rendered by `field_image_link` opened in the same tab.
2. Applied #3
3. Cleared caches and rebuilt theme registry.
- External links now open in a new tab with `target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"`.
- Internal links continue to open in the same tab as expected.

In Drupal core changes are made on on 11.x (our main development branch) first, and are then back ported as needed according to the Core change policies.

Doesn't appear anything to review

RE #4, what did you test? There is no patch #2, the patch you are referencing (3323974-media-link-blank-target-11.x.patch) does not exist, nor here, nor in issue #3323974 which I guess is not even closely related to this one.

Did you use AI to generate your comment? If yes, be aware this is covered under the credit abuse policy. https://www.drupal.org/drupalorg/docs/marketplace/abuse-of-the-contribut...

This is intentional see #3142818: Remove target=_blank from links in media settings forms and also #2652272: Review (and in most cases remove) use of target="_blank" attribute outside the installer or update.php and various other issues.

2 things from me on this issue:

1. I think it should be closed as "Works as designed"
2. If keeping it open, both approaches in #3 are incorrect. At minimum, create a variable in hook_preprocess, and use that variable for the href on the wrapping a tag.

And one friendly tip: when pasting code, please put it inside "<code>" tags.

RE#7 Thanks for the heads‑up, and sorry for the mix‑up.I was juggling a few tickets and accidentally copied the from another issue. The tests I ran here were all done manually; there was no AI involved. I’ve edited my earlier comment to remove the wrong filename .Appreciate the reminder about the credit‑abuse policy .

@sagarsingh24 can you clarify which issue 3323974-media-link-blank-target-11.x.patch is uploaded to? Since it's not on issue #3323974: Subtheme _Variables.scss ?

Apologies for the confusion earlier.
There is no patch called 3323974‑media‑link‑blank‑target‑11.x.patch on Drupal.org.
I accidentally copied that filename into my first comment while moving personal notes between tickets.
What I actually tested was @himanshuraj workaround in comment #3 (the theme‑level hook_preprocess_field() snippet). I applied it locally, cleared caches, and confirmed it fixes the issue on Drupal 11.2 / PHP 8.3.
I’ve removed the stray filename from my earlier comment
I’m fairly new to the issue queue and was trying to write a professional‑sounding report; in doing so I mixed up my notes. I’ll be more careful going forward.
Thanks for everyone’s patience, and apologies for the confusion.

Sorry again

If this is going anywhere, I don't think it should be going to media.

The _actual_ request seems to be "As a site builder, if I add a link field to an entity, I want the option to have that link open in a new tab". Is that accurate?

If so, I think this should be tagged with 'link.module' instead of 'media system'.