Updated: Feb 6 1998 9:36AM

"Nightline" announced the last-minute scrapping of a planned International Monetary Fund special (thank God!) to bring us a (Koppel admitted it) "ragged" run-through of a story that broke late in the New York Times: Betty Currie, President Clinton's loyal Hemdall (that's the gatekeeper in Norse mythology, folks), may be throwing her boss to the hounds. Did Clinton, fresh from his deposition, "coax" Currie on intern-al affairs? The consensus from the ABC News analysts: If Betty's gone over, the White House is in trouble. As the mob of pitchfork-wielding journalists swarmed at the briefing-room door, Mike McCurry was laying low at the Blair dinner. Will someone get a beeper on that guy, please?

Elsewhere on the dial, Larry King turned over the bully pulpit to Billy Graham, who demurred on the troubles of friend and fellow southern boy Clinton. Graham did slip in a "let he who is without sin" caveat or two. He's in the forgiving business, after all. Larry nodded sagely.

At 10, both "Brian Williams" and CNN, unaware of (or unwilling to go with) the NYT break, led with the latest on Monica's immunity deal. Starr, apparently, won't close until he can talk to her personally. She's got until noon today, or he'll prosecute her for perjury, which could delay the main event for months...Tune in to "Brian" tomorrow for part two of Clare Shipman's one-on-one with Al "Don't Say Transition" Gore, in which she asks about 2000... Closing out CNN's hour was a vintage Jeannie Moos piece about Lewinsky look-alikes in Washington. One double actually ran to and from the staked-out courthouse with a coat over her head, shouting "I have nothing to say" and then "escaping" in a getaway car while the cameramen chased her.

-- Frank Pellegrini