In 2007 he became the founding editor in chief and lead columnist of Taraf, a daily Turkish newspaper, and remained in the position until his resignation in December 2012.In September 2008 when Altan published an article titled "Oh, My Brother" dedicated to the victims of the Armenian Genocide, he was charged under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code for "denigrating Turkishness". The judicial claim was initiated by the far-right "Great Union Party."
Dört Mevsim Sonbahar, Sudaki İz, İsyan Günlerinde Aşk, Kılıç Yarası’nın da aralarında bulunduğu 11 roman ve beş deneme kitabının yazarı. Akademi Yayınevi Roman Ödülü (1983/ Dört Mevsim Sonbahar), Yunus Nadi Ödülü (1998/ Kılıç Yarası gibi), Leipzig Özgürlük ve Medyanın Geleceği ödülü ( 2009), Uluslararası Hrant Dink Ödülü (2011), Türkiye Yayıncılar Birliği Düşünce ve İfade Özgürlüğü (2013) sahibi.