 During the military coup in 1972 Baydar was arrested due to her socialist activity as a member of the Workers Party of Turkey and the Teachers' Union of Turkey and she left the University.Between 1972 and 1974 she worked as a columnist in the newspapers "Yeni Ortam" ([New Platform]) and "Politika" ([Politics]).She issued her first journal together with her husband Aydın Engin and Yusuf Ziya Bahadınlı.