I think that tools for establishing the credibility of information do exist and we are all pretty much capable of using them. But you have hit on the key problem/issue -- first is all that matters.
And honestly, most of us know better than to just read something somewhere and decide that it is iron-clad fact. But I do not have the time and inclination to research everything I come across.
I think we all need to seriously reconsider what our priorities are. Do we want ALL the information THIS DAMN INSTANT for free or would be trade a bit of a delay and maybe a few dollars a week for reliable consistent information?
I find it alarming that this is seeping into academic/scientific publications. They are already ferociously expensive and not typically concerned with any kind of time pressure to get the information out. You can't get "scooped" - either an author wants to publish it in your journal or they don't. So to see the established system break-down so badly in this case is really troubling.
But I find everything troubling lately...