Jay Smith, president of Cox Newspapers, announced Tuesday he will step down as chief of the privately held newspaper publishing company that owns more than 40 U.S. newspapers, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Wednesday.

Sandy Schwartz, president of Auto Trader, also owned by Cox, will take over the position May 1.

Cox Newspapers owns The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and 42 other newspapers across the United States.

Schwartz told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the newspaper group will “have to move faster than we've moved,” to put information online. “Society is moving fast.” Schwartz said he will use his experience at autotrader.com to better Cox's online platforms.