The Genoveses and Luccheses had a contract out on his head. But due to his public persona and love for attention, he was always surrounded by the media and under constant FBI surveillance.
That was the main reason why the Chin and Vic/Gas couldn't whack Gotti. If Gotti stayed in the shadows, he would have been dead within a couple of years after taking over the family.
I'm sure that's part of it, but they did try and blew up deciccio. After that they called a spade a spade and moved on. Maybe they would have kept trying if Gotti wasn't so popular, so you have a point; and the other point that agrees with your point is that gotti's profile made him a lightning rod for the feds which was ok with the other families who were not in the spotlight
