You are completely ignoring Newt's involvement in this discussion. It is almost as if he is a passive observer and couldn't shape the discussion as he chooses, which couldn't be farther from the truth. If Newt were to run again it would be with something like the Contract with America. The media wouldn't have a choice on whether on not to discuss that. Newt has had several years to lick his wounds and prepare for the next round. It isn't 1999 again.
Actually, I'm not ignoring that at all. While Newt could try to lead the discussion in one direction or another, the vast bulk of the American populace isn't listening to long explanations of what a candidate wants to do.
It's all soundbites and press coverage. Newt's ideas would simply disappear into the flood of negative stories that would pour out of the media.
Surely you know that. Look at President Bush. He said, many times, that he didn't want to close the borders. He said in in 2000. Nobody heard him, not even Freepers, who do pay more attention than most to the behind-the-story story.
Like it or not, it is still the MSM that reaches the bulk of US voters. I can guarantee that Newt's marital pecadilloes would take the fore.
You are also forgetting those very "values" voters out there. They won't take kindly to a serial philanderer as a candidate.