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NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Within seconds of taking the stage here at the CNN debate on Thursday night, Newt Gingrich took a bare-knuckled swing at the media for airing unsavory allegations from his ex-wife.

Gingrich issued his screed in a manner that delighted the partisan Republican crowd and kept the former House speaker on offense before Saturday’s pivotal South Carolina primary.

After allowing each of the four remaining GOP presidential candidates an opportunity to introduce themselves, moderator John King immediately pivoted to Gingrich, bringing up the charge from his second wife, Marianne, that he once asked her to consider an “open marriage” while he carried on an extramarital affair with his current wife, Callista.

King asked if Gingrich wanted to respond to the comment Marianne Gingrich had made in an ABC News interview that aired on Thursday.

“No,” Gingrich said sternly, to emphatic and sustained applause from the audience.

But respond he did.

Gingrich went on to eviscerate the “elite media” -- a diatribe that could boost his hopes of a come-from-behind victory by drawing attention to the feisty exchange ahead of Saturday's voting.

Gingrich wagged his finger at King and condemned “the destructive, vicious, negative nature of much of the news media” -- and King in particular for bringing “personal pain” into a presidential debate.

“Every person in here has had someone close to them go through painful things,” he said. “To take an ex-wife and make it two days before the primary a significant question in a presidential campaign is as close to despicable as anything I can imagine.”

King responded by reminding Gingrich that the interview with his ex-wife was not conducted by CNN.

“It was repeated by your network,” Gingrich said, his voice rising in anger and his finger shaking at King. “You chose to start this debate with it.”

Gingrich finally got around to declaring Marianne Gingrich's allegations “false” and said that his campaign had offered several mutual friends who could disprove the charges but that ABC declined to use them.

“I’m tired of the elite media protecting Barack Obama by attacking Republicans,” Gingrich said.

Asked for his reaction to the ex-wife's comments, Mitt Romney took a pass and said that the candidates should “get down to real issues.”

Rick Santorum, on the other hand, said that “issues of character” were ones “for people to consider,” while Ron Paul noted how proud he was that his wife of over 50 years was there at the debate hall.

In the post-debate spin room, Gingrich aides seemed pleased with the tenor of the exchange. “I think people appreciate his frankness,” said Gingrich spokesman R.C. Hammond, adding that the candidate’s past has already been fully litigated.

After a debate that was dominated by discussion of the candidates’ personal backgrounds, Ohio Sen. Rob Portman -- who endorsed Romney on Thursday -- said he was “disappointed there was a lack of focus on the economy,” especially given South Carolina’s 9.9 percent unemployment rate.

While they did not address directly the Marianne Gingrich allegations, Santorum and Romney worked in tandem to challenge Gingrich on his character and tenure as speaker.

Santorum noted that Gingrich was overthrown by his Republican colleagues in a coup and expressed concern about “worrisome moments” that Gingrich might have if he were to become the Republican nominee.