diff --git a/rest_framework/compat.py b/rest_framework/compat.py
index e4293cebf..7e80704e1 100644
--- a/rest_framework/compat.py
+++ b/rest_framework/compat.py
@@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ try:
         )
         md_filter_add_syntax_highlight(md)
         return md.convert(text)
-except (ImportError, AttributeError):
+except ImportError:
     apply_markdown = None
     markdown = None